Boeing received a $216 million, five-year contract from the U.S. Air Force to upgrade its 59-jet KC-10 tanker fleet with a new communication, navigation, surveillance and air traffic management (CNS/ATM) system, the company said Wednesday.
According to Boeing, the upgrades will enable to fleet to comply with the forecasted 2015 CNS/ATM FAA/ICAO standards, which allow shared access within both civil and military airspace.
"As air traffic continues to increase, modern CNS/ATM systems become essential for communicating precise flight data and obtaining the most direct routing," said Mike Harris, Boeing vice president of Weapon Systems Modernization. "This upgrade is critical to the Air Force for pilots’ safety, mission effectiveness and lower operational costs."
Boeing said the contract will be managed at its Long Beach, Calif., facility. The first airplane will be modified and flight-tested in 2012 at the company’s San Antonio facility. Boeing will complete and deliver the final KC-10 modification in 2015.