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Contact:
Hal Klopper |
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Contact:
Hal Klopper |
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
96-198A
FARNBOROUGH, England, Sept. 2, 1996 -- The U.S. Army and McDonnell Douglas has signed a multi-year agreement for the remanufacture of 232 AH-64D Longbow Apache helicopters over the next five years.
Due to cost savings in the $1.9 billion multi-year contract, including options, the U.S. Army says it will be able to procure more aircraft compared to five single-year acquisitions. First delivery is scheduled for March 1997.
In addition to cost savings for the Army, the multi-year contract will help reduce acquisition costs for international customers, and stabilize the Longbow Apache production line and the approved configuration of the aircraft for many years to come.
The advanced acquisition phase of the contract, signed last December, provided for McDonnell Douglas Helicopter Systems in Mesa, Ariz., to deliver 18 remanufactured Longbow Apaches in the first year of production.
The multi-year purchase increases the Longbow Apache production rate in the first year to 24 aircraft and 232 for the five-year period. During that same time, the Army will field two additional combat-ready Longbow Apache battalions.
The contract also includes funding for McDonnell Douglas to train pilots and maintenance personnel for the first two equipped units, incorporation of interactive electronic technical manuals, first article testing of the production aircraft, initial spares, and a variety of program support tasks for the first production lot. It also provides funding of an option for pilot and maintenance training devices.
The U.S. Army plans to remanufacture its entire AH-64A Apache fleet of more than 750 helicopters over the next decade.
Remanufacturing efforts got under way earlier this year at McDonnell Douglas. More than a dozen veteran AH-64A Apaches have been flown to Mesa where they are being stripped to bare fuselage in preparation for the remanufacturing process. The first AH-64A Apache fuselage, which has been prepared for the remanufacturing process, moved to the Longbow Apache final assembly line in Mesa this week.
The Longbow Apache's fire control radar and advanced avionics suite give combat pilots the ability to rapidly detect, classify, prioritize and engage stationary or moving enemy targets at standoff ranges.
The AH-64D is being developed by Team Apache Modernization, which includes the U.S. Army, McDonnell Douglas as total systems integrator; and a joint venture comprised of Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman to develop the Longbow fire control radar and the radar frequency Hellfire missile.