L-3 has delivered its first refurbished Lockheed Martin P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft back to the US Navy under the sustainment, modification and installation programme (SMIP).
L-3 preforms SMIP work on all variants of the Orion airframe, 147 of which are still in service, for the USN, the company says. That includes P-3 outer wing refurbishment, P-3 outer wing installation, special structural inspection kits, phased maintenance inspections and modification/installation programs.
The company says it will only get better over time in refurbishing the ageing four-engined turboprop.
"We are committed to continuous improvement, and we know that accelerating the turnaround time in such a dramatic way reduces the cost of sustainment and increases the operational availability of the aircraft to the warfighter," says Nick Farah, executive vice president of L-3 Platform Systems.
L-3 was first awarded the SMIP contract in 201, the indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity programme is a follow-on to a similar contract awarded to L-3 in 2005.
Source: Flight International
