Boeing

The Boeing Company has received a $33 million contract to upgrade the mission computers and software of Saudi Arabia's fleet of five Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft and two ground support systems. The contract was awarded by the Electronic Systems Center, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., under a Foreign Military Sale agreement.

Under the Saudi Block 0 contract, the mission computing system and software will be upgraded, increasing ease of use and operator efficiency. Crew training and logistics support also will be provided.

The mission computers will be removed from the aircraft in Seattle, sent to Lockheed Martin in Owego, N.Y., for modification -- under subcontract to Boeing -- and then returned to Seattle for reinstallation and testing. Aircraft modification is scheduled to begin in March 1999 and be completed by November 1999. Two ground systems will be modified in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- one in 1998, the other in 1999.

Saudi Arabia's AWACS fleet is part of the Peace Sentinel program that began in 1981. It included the five AWACS aircraft and eight KE-3 refueling tanker aircraft, along with spare parts, trainers and support equipment. The first Saudi E-3 was delivered in June 1986, with deliveries of the remaining E-3s and tankers completed by September 1987.