BRUSSELS, April 21 (Reuters) - The weak dollar could lead to the loss of thousands of European aerospace and defence jobs, the heads of leading companies in the sector said on Monday.

The warning was issued by the council of the AeroSpace and Defence Industries Association of Europe (ASD) body after a meeting in Brussels and is the latest in a series of concerns raised by European industry.

"ASD Council members believe that the continuing weakness of the dollar will inevitably lead to a massive relocation of aerospace production capabilities as well as technology centres to US dollar priced locations, where labour costs are approximately 30 to 40 percent lower than in the euro zone," it said in a statement.

"Competitive advantages for industry based in US dollar economies and this `necessary step' of relocation could threaten the future of the more than 640,000 highly skilled workers and engineers," it added.

The ASD Council includes the chiefs of companies from Airbus [ARBU.UL], BAE Systems (BAES.L: Quote, Profile, Research), EADS (EAD.PA: Quote, Profile, Research), Finmeccanica (SIFI.MI: Quote, Profile, Research), Rheinmetall (RHMG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) and Rolls-Royce (RR.L: Quote, Profile, Research).

On late European trade on Monday the euro stood at $1.5881 after reaching a record $1.5983 hit last week. (Reporting by Mark John)