Westland Helicopters, based in Yeovil, Somerset, was Britain's last helicopter manufacturer. By 1985 the company had gradually fallen into unprofitability and in April of that year Alan Bristow, a former employee who had set up his own helicopter operating company, launched an £89 million rescue bid. The Westland board initially rejected Bristow's bid, and after the Thatcher Government forced it to accept, Bristow threatened to pull out unless he was given assurances of new Ministry of Defence orders and that repayment of a £40 million "launch aid" loan from the government would be waived. Bristow withdrew his bid in June 1985, by which time Westland preferred an agreement with the American company Sikorsky Aircraft. Defence Secretary Michael Heseltine MP demanded a "European" solution, integrating Westland with a consortium in which the UK was represented by British Aerospace (BAe). Thatcher and Trade and Industry Secretary Leon Brittan, while ostensibly maintaining a neutral stance, wanted a merger with Sikorsky.
Heseltine refused to accept Thatcher's choice, and claimed that she was refusing to allow a free ministerial discussion about the matter – even suggesting that she had lied about cancelling a scheduled meeting. Eventually, when ordered to cease campaigning for his European consortium, he resigned – walking out of a Cabinet meeting in January 1986. Brittan was then forced to resign for having previously ordered the leaking to the press of a confidential legal letter critical of Heseltine (on the orders of Thatcher's aides, he admitted some years later), and for his lack of candour to the House of Commons about his efforts to persuade BAe to withdraw from Heseltine's consortium.
Thatcher's survival as Prime Minister briefly appeared to be in question. She rode out the crisis, but the episode had embarrassed her government and undermined her reputation.
Westland was eventually bought by Sikorsky.
Wikipedia, citing his autobiography, asserts that Alan Bristow was sacked by Westland "for attacking the company's sales manager." It doesn't say what form (verbal, written or physical) this attack took.
© Haydn Thompson 2020