Rick Kirkland Quotations

There are numerous international and US P-3 customers that will require P-3 life extension kits to sustain their aircraft. The production of the outer wing is a critical part of life extension that will provide an additional 20 years of service life. The kit also includes the centre wing lower surface, horizontal stabilizer, wing and horizontal stabilizer leading edges, and filet fairings. The kit incorporates design enhancements and new materials with increased corrosion resistance that will provide P-3 operators an additional 15,000 hours of service life with significantly reduced maintenance costs, reduced down time and increased aircraft availability.

Interest in extending the service life of the world's P-3 and CP-140 fleet has increased as a result of the P-3 Structural Life Assessment Program (SLAP). With many of the P-3 aircraft in operation now reaching their service life limits sooner than expected, and with no affordable replacement maritime patrol aircraft available, a service life extension is the only way for nations to maintain this vital operational capability.

By any standards, this is an attractive market.

The growing age of this fleet, and the lack of an affordable replacement, leads to the need for upgrade programs. The lowest risk and most cost-effective solution for extending the P-3 service life is a re-wing. This approach enables an operator to maintain a maritime patrol presence at a fraction of the cost of a new aircraft. In addition, the customer can have a high degree of confidence in the cost and schedule because entire assemblies are being replaced with new material.