Boeing pitches 737 to RAAF for Orion replacememt

BOEING is likely to pitch its 737-based multi-mission maritime aircraft as a replacement for Australia’s P-3 Orion fleet after winning a $US3.9 billion ($5.6 billion) contract to supply the planes to the US Navy.
The US aerospace giant had already held what a spokesman described as “very preliminary talks” with Australian officials in the run-up to the US contract.
But it hopes that Australia will be an early participant helping to define the MMA mission and capabilities.
Boeing Integrated Defence Systems president and chief executive Jim Albaugh told a recent briefing in Sydney that Australia would stand to gain should the US bid be successful and should Canberra decide to replace Orions with 737s.
Mr Albaugh said Boeing understood “what offsets were all about” and that work on the new planes could be done here if Australia opted for a 737-based replacement.
Australia is already gaining expertise on military 737s through its decision to buy six Wedgetail early-warning and control aircraft.
The final four Wedgetail aircraft will be completed at Boeing Australia facilities at Amberley, near Brisbane, creating up to 170 jobs in a project worth about $80 million. Mr Albaugh said it was not clear whether the MMA program would follow the model for industrial co-operation followed by the Joint Strike Fighter.
“I don’t think the US Navy has gone around the world asking people for investments as was done for the JSF,” he said.
The US Navy deal to develop the next generation of submarine-hunting aircraft provided a welcome boost to Boeing at the expense of incumbent Lockheed Martin.
The US manufacturer’s reputation has suffered in the past year from scandals over a $US23 billion deal to supply refuelling tankers based on the 767. The scandals claimed the scalp of the company’s chief financial officer and prompted the resignation of chief executive Phil Condit.
The $US3.9 billion contract will allow Boeing to build about six prototype aircraft and could grow to $US20 billion if the US Navy decides later in the decade to procure 100 new anti-submarine aircraft.