Boeing awarded $45M contract for U.S. Navy, Australian P-8A upgrades

Sept. 12 (UPI) -- The Boeing Company has been awarded more than $45 million for P-8A aircrew training upgrades for the U.S. Navy and government of Australia.

The deal, announced Wednesday by the Department of Defense, sees most of the upgrades work for the maritime patrol and surveillance aircraft will be performed in the United States.

Forty-five percent of the work will be done in St. Louis, Mo. and 40 percent in Jacksonville, Fla., with 12 percent done in Australia, 2 percent in Whidbey Island, Wash., and 1 percent done in Orlando, Fla.

The work is scheduled to be competed by December 2022.

Fiscal 2017 aircraft procurement funds in the amount of $37,000,969 and cooperative engagement agreement funds in the amount of $8,803,019 were obligated to the award.

The Naval Air Warfare Center Training System Division, Orlando, Fla. is the contracting activity.

Earlier this spring, the P-8A Poseiden aircraft joined surveillance operations in Japan, where the guided-missile frigate HMAS Melbourne was already deployed.

The Australian deployment enforces United Nations sanctions against North Korea.

The maritime patrol and surveillance aircraft is based on the design of Boeing's 737-800 fuselage.