Boeing received a
$250 million contract from NATO to install digital flight decks and avionics on
13 of the Alliance’s E-3 Airborne Early Warning and Control System aircraft,
the company
announced
Aug. 6. The new technology ensures compliance with current and future air
traffic control and navigation requirements, providing the NATO AWACS broader
access to airspace around the world, “saving time and fuel during operations,”
said Jon Hunsberger, Boeing AWACS program manager. The upgrades also will cut
personnel costs by reducing the flight-deck crew from four to three. Boeing
also will upgrade a US Air Force AWACS beginning in November. In other contract
actions, Northrop Grumman Technical Services received an $89.9 million contract
modification for sustainment of the Propulsion/Ground/Guidance systems of the ICBM
weapon system. The contract is managed by the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center,
Hill AFB, Utah. And, Raytheon Missile Systems received a $44 million contract
modification to its cost-plus-fixed-fee agreement for the design, development,
and engineering analysis of the AIM-9X Block II missile system. The contract,
managed by the Naval Air Systems Command, includes $23.6 million in Air Force
work, in addition to work for the Navy and seven allied nations. (DOD
contract
announcement.)