For Immediate Release

June 14, 2004

AWARD OF MARITIME PATROL AIRCRAFT CONTRACT TO BOEING
'MAJOR STEP FORWARD FOR MARITIME SURVEILLANCE'

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Navy will gain a substantial boost in capability with its selection today of a Boeing 737 airframe for its new Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft (MMA), replacing the aging fleet of P-3C Orion surveillance planes, U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks said Monday.

            "With the shift to a more modern, jet powered aircraft, it represents a major step forward for maritime surveillance," said the congressman, a member of the House Defense Appropriations subcommittee.

            Rep. Dicks said the new fleet of 737 aircraft will allow the Navy to travel much quicker to the operational areas where it will conduct aerial surveillance of maritime threats.  "The new plane will have a much greater worldwide reach" than its predecessor, the propeller-driven P-3C, based on the Lockheed C-130 airframe he said.

            The $3.9 billion contract that was awarded by the Defense Department today will pay for the development and launch of the MMA aircraft.   In its announcement today, the Navy said it planned to acquire 108 MMA aircraft, which are expected to cost about $20 billion.  Ultimately, the market for the P-3 replacement aircraft in the United States is about 150, with foreign sales expected to represent another 150, Rep. Dicks said.

            The order is good news also for Boeing, Rep. Dicks commented.  The added work will employ 1,200 workers in the Puget Sound area, most at the company's Renton production facilities, where the Boeing-737 airframes are constructed.

            The Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft will perform maritime surveillance for the Navy, a mission which has received a renewed focus from the Navy in recent years under the leadership of Chief of Naval Operations Vernon Clark.  The Navy recently concluded that its Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) capabilities had deteriorated since the end of the Cold War and that ASW threats were proliferating around the world.  As a result, the CNO directed a renewed focus on ASW, leading to today's announcement of a P-3 replacement aircraft, Rep. Dicks noted.

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