L-3 MAS Canada and BAE Systems have won an extension to their F/A-18 Classic Hornet Maintenance and Modification Support contract.
The companies have agreed with the Australian Defence Force on a 10-month contract extension, from December 2012 to October 2013.
Under the agreement, an additional 14 F/A-18 Classic Hornet aircraft will undergo structural refurbishment modifications and deeper maintenance to support capability requirements.
The overall contract value has increased by $50 million to $130 million.
The contract will support 60 extra jobs and involve a total of over 200 highly skilled aerospace technicians and support personnel at Williamtown, NSW.
L-3 MAS President Sylvain Bédard said: “We see ourselves providing the heavy lifting on the RAAF’s Classic F/A-18 Hornet program.
“This contract extension demonstrates the Commonwealth’s confidence in our team to deliver Hornet support into the foreseeable future.
“It also further extends the long-standing business relationship we have enjoyed with the DMO dating back to the early 1990s, when our company was first involved in conducting a large part of the International Follow-On Structural Tests.”
BAE Systems has provided Hornet deeper maintenance services to the RAAF since 2003. The company partnered with L-3MAS in consortium in April 2009 to deliver the highly successful Hornet Structural Refurbishment Program modification to extend the RAAF’s Classic Hornet fleet.