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ASLEP  CP-140 Aurora Upgrade  –  Industry News Release  –  Sept / Nov 2008 Lockheed Martin  —  News  —   Aurora Structual Life Extension Update: Lockheed Martin has issued another news release on the CF  CP-140 Aurora ASLEP, this time to announce the awarding of a $156M contract from Canada. There's some irony in having replacement wings and parts for the CP-140 built in the US. Until September 1990, outer wings for all P-3 models were built in Montreal by Canadair. The production of P-3 assemblies ceased when Canadair won a bid to produce parts for the planned successor to the P-3 Orions,  Lockheed's P-7  LRAACA which was cancelled. Lockheed Martin has already been selected by DND to provide airframe components for the CP-140 Aurora maritime patrol aircraft through  ASLEP (Aurora Structural Life Extension Project). This was done through an Advanced Contract Award Notification issued in June 2008. Now Lockheed Martin has issued a news release related primarily to new-production outer wing panels being produced for other forces (the Norwegian Air Force, US Customs, and US Navy being specifically mentioned) through the firm's similarly named program  –  the P-3  Aircraft Service Life Extension Program or ASLEP. The odd  bit in the Lockheed Martin news release (dated 04 Sept 2008) is a statement that LM "had submitted a response to the Canadian Forces under a Request For Proposal"  for  Life Extension Kits.  No RFP was publicly released for airframe components under DND's ASLEP. So why an ACAN for such components claiming an Original Equipment Manufacturer restriction if the OEM (Lockheed Martin, in this case) has already responded to a RFP? This is most peculiar. As for LM's version of ASLEP,  this news release lists a package which includes new- production replacement components  –  outer wing panels, center wing  lower sections and  horizontal stabilizers. Ten sets of each of these major components are listed in the June 2008 ACAN for the CP-140 Aurora Structural Life Extension Project components. The contents of the 19 November 2008  Lockheed Martin press release follows below. Lockheed Martin press release Lockheed Martin Receives $156 Million Contract To Extend Canadian CP-140 Aurora Aircraft Service Life Marietta, Ga., November 19th, 2008 -- Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] has received a $156 million contract to provide the P-3 Aircraft Service Life Extension Program (ASLEP) for the Canadian Forces' CP-140 aircraft fleet. Under this contract, 10 Canadian CP-140 Aurora aircraft will receive Life Extension Kits consisting of all-new outer wings, center wing lower surface assemblies, horizontal stabilizers, wing and horizontal stabilizer leading edges, and various items to be installed on a conditional basis. Lockheed Martin Life Extension Kits will provide, on average, an additional 20-25 years of service life for the world's Orion and Aurora fleets and will greatly reduce maintenance costs over the aircraft's service life. "Lockheed Martin Life Extension Kits will give the Canadian Forces an additional 15,000 flight hours of service life from their Auroras," said Ray Burick, Lockheed Martin vice president of P-3/S-3 programs. "The ASLEP solution leverages the know- ledge and experience of Lockheed Martin as the original equipment manufacturer to support the P-3 and CP-140 aircraft." Canada becomes the fourth customer under the Lockheed Martin P-3 ASLEP program. Other customers for the Life Extension Kits are the Royal Norwegian Air Force and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The U.S. Navy is under contract for 13 sets of new outer wings. A proposal for the Taiwan P-3 fleet is also in work. "Lockheed Martin’s ASLEP solution is the most cost-effective, lowest risk choice for long-term P-3 or CP-140 sustainment," said Burick. "As the P-3 original equipment manufacturer, Lockheed Martin is uniquely qualified to sustain and support the world’s P-3 fleets." The contents of the 04 September 2008  Lockheed Martin press release follows below. Lockheed Martin press release U.S. Navy P-3 Orions To Receive Lockheed Martin New Production Outer Wings Marietta, Ga.,  September 4th, 2008  –  Lockheed Martin has received a $129.3 million contract to build a total of  13 new outer wing sets for the U.S. Navy's  P-3 Orion fleet. The all new production  outer wings  will be delivered  to the Navy beginning in early 2010 for installation on selected aircraft. "Lockheed Martin has a long, proud history of providing P-3 sustainment and support to the U.S. Navy," said Ray Burick, Lockheed Martin vice president of P-3/S-3 [Viking] programs. "This new wing order is the next step in that partnership." Lockheed Martin's P-3 wing production line opened in March 2008 and is the corner- stone of  the company's  P-3  Aircraft Service Life Extension Program (ASLEP) [ not to be confused with DND's project with the same acronym ].  Lockheed  Martin currently has the Royal Norwegian Air Force  [P-3N] and  the U.S. Customs and  Border Protect- ion Service under contract for P-3 Life Extension Kits, and has submitted a response to the Canadian Forces under a  Request For Proposal  [RFP]. A proposal  for the Taiwan P-3 fleet is also in work. [Update 15 Jan 2009: IMP of Halifax, NS  has announced  that  it  has won the contract to rewing the six Royal Norwegian Air Force P-3N Orions at its Halifax Stanfield plant.] "As the P-3 Orion original equipment manufacturer, Lockheed Martin is uniquely qual- ified to sustain and support the world’s P-3 fleets," said Burick. "Aside from the oper- ators of these aircraft, nobody knows the P-3 better than Lockheed Martin." The complete ASLEP solution replaces the aircraft[ 's ] outer wings, center wing lower section and  horizontal  stabilizers  with  new production  components.  All fatigue-life limiting structures on the aircraft are replaced with enhanced-design components and improved corrosion-resistant materials that will greatly reduce maintenance costs over the aircraft's service life. "Lockheed  Martin is committed to providing a range of  solutions that enables operat- ional  effectiveness  for  P-3 Orion  operators  worldwide  for  decades  to  come," said Burick. "We're  fully prepared  to support  the U.S. Navy and  all our customers in their future maritime surveillance activities."