The Australian Army has signed a $12.718 million contract with Boeing Australia to supply Boeing-Insitu Scan Eagle unmanned air vehicle services for a six month period.
Newly released Australian government purchasing records show the lease runs until 30 June 2007. The Australian Department of Defence is planning to announce the deal later this month with this expected to detail the number of systems involved and usage plans.
The sole source contract was awarded 8 November by the Australian Defence Materiel Organisations Army Aviation System Programme Office. The deal follows unsolicited proposals to the Australian Army headquarters by Boeing proposing a service lease ahead of the proposed acquisition of Israeli Aircraft Industries I-View 250 tactical UAVs.
Boeing Australia is also the proposed prime contractor for the I-View deal, a contract for which is now anticipated by mid December after protracted delays in negotiations.
Scan Eagle is currently in operational service in Iraq with US Marine Corps expeditionary units under rolling service-lease contracts. The UAV has also been trialled by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence as a ship launched surveillance and reconnaissance system under its former Joint UAV Experimentation Programme.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
