Upgrades To Multiple Systems Over A 9 Year Span
Boeing delivered the 79th and final upgraded CF-18 Hornet
aircraft to the Canadian Department of National Defence during a
ceremony in Mirabel, Quebec on Thursday, hosted by industry partner
L-3 Communications MAS, who performed final upgrade installations.
The delivery brings the nine-year, two-phased CF-18 Modernization
Project to a close.
File Photo
Phase 1 of the project, completed in 2006, upgraded the Canadian
Hornet fleet’s avionics, radar, radio and weapons
capabilities. Phase 2 provided the following improvements:
- A data link system to ensure Canadian forces are interoperable
with aircraft from the United States and other allied nations.
- The Boeing Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System to improve
weapons targeting.
- New color cockpit displays to increase situational
awareness.
- An upgraded, chaff-and-flare dispensing electronic warfare
system to improve survivability.
Phase 1 was valued at $436 million and Phase 2 at $150 million.
Boeing designed the upgrades and completed two prototype aircraft.
L-3 Electronic Systems, with locations in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and
Toronto, developed and produced the upgraded crew station displays.
L-3 Communications MAS installed the upgrades on the
program’s remaining 77 aircraft.
"Boeing’s upgrades to Canada’s CF-18 fleet will
ensure that this fighter force will remain effective and
operationally credible for many years to come," said Jim
O’Neill, vice president and general manager, Boeing
Integrated Logistics. "Nearly 30 years after the delivery of the
first CF-18 Hornet, Canada’s defense forces are better
equipped than ever, with more capability and a fully modernized
fleet, due to the innovative upgrades designed and installed by
Boeing and our partner, L-3 Communications MAS."
"Across all four regions of Canada, Boeing worked with more than
25 Canadian suppliers and organizations through direct and indirect
work packages that were an integral part of Boeing’s
Industrial and Regional Benefits program for CF-18 modernization,"
said Pete Peterson, country director and vice president in Canada
for Boeing Defense, Space & Security. "All technical program
milestones were completed on schedule and within budget, and we
completed industrial and regional benefits commitments early,
making this a truly successful program."