Aerospace |
|
Northrop
Grumman And McDonnell Douglas Sign $1.9 Billion MOA For C-17 Another Memorandum of Understanding is under way. Last week, Northrop Grumman Corporation and McDonnell Douglas Corporation signed an MOA for the production of major components for 80 additional US Air Force C-17 military transport aircraft. The agreement is worth $1.9 billion. The MOA will cover fiscal years 1997 to 2002, with deliveries continuing into early 2004 followed by a 1996 multi-year procurement agreement between the Air Force and McDonnell Douglas to build 80 additional C-17'sby the year 2004. Ralph D. Crosby Jr., corporate vice president and general manager of Northrop Grumman's Commercial Aircraft Division, said of the MOA, "We take special pride in being McDonnell Douglas' number one C-17 supplier. Extending our work over 80 more airplanes sustains that position and adds significant work to our business base, providing stability for the long term." Northrop Grumman's Commercial Aircraft Division, the largest supplier to McDonnell Douglas on the C-17 Globemaster III, produces engine nacelles, tail sections and other aerostructure components. This $1.9 billion deal comes at a time when McDonnell Douglas and Boeing and Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin, respectively, have already announced their efforts to merge. The 80 C-17 shipsets will bring the Air Force's total Globemaster III fleet to 120. McDonnell Douglas recently began assembly of the 41st C-17 production aircraft -- the first under the multi-year contract. The US. Air Force/McDonnell Douglas C-17 Globemaster III is designed
to fulfill airlift needs well into the 21st century, carrying large combat
equipment, troops and humanitarian aid directly to small austere airfields
anywhere in the world. |
