ST. LOUIS, Sept. 5 (UPI) -- Boeing reports it has received a follow-on order from the U.S. Air Force to produce additional replacement wings for A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft.
The award is for 56 replacement wings and is worth $212 million. A delivery schedule for the additional wings was not disclosed.
New wings for the USAF fleet of A-10s, which will be produced at Boeing's plant in Macon, Ga., will improve the mission availability of the Air Force's A-10 fleet by 4 percent, cut down on aircraft maintenance costs and extend the service life of the aircraft to 2035.
With this follow-on order, the U.S. Air Force has now ordered 173 wings for the aircraft, which is used for close air support of ground forces.
Boeing is under contract to build as many as 242 wings for the plane.
A twin-engine jet, the Thunderbolt was developed in the 1970s as a counter-measure to armored forces.
