Refurbishment for the Royal New Zealand Air Force

L-3 Communications' SPAR Aerospace completes C-130 Hercules Centre Wing refurbishment for the Royal New Zealand Air Force

EDMONTON, May 29 /CNW-AsiaNet/ --

SPAR Aerospace Limited (L-3 SPAR), a subsidiary of L-3 Communications (NYSE: LLL), successfully completed the first C-130 center wing refurbishment and reinstallation on May 28, 2007, achieving a critical milestone on the Royal New Zealand Air Force's (RNZAF) C-130 Life Extension Program.

This is the first-ever complete refurbishment of a C-130 centre wing that addresses the critical life-limiting problem on the C-130 Hercules: centre wing structural fatigue and cracking. Rather than an inspect and repair approach, SPAR's innovative solution involved the complete disassembly of the center wing box and the replacement of more than 80 percent of the centre wing box parts, including the complete reconstruction of the entire lower surface. L-3 SPAR developed its own refurbishment processes and special tooling.

"The completion of the centre wing refurbishment is the culmination of a 10-year focus on developing innovative, cost effective solutions for customers with C-130 centre wing fatigue problems," said Patrice Pelletier, L-3 SPAR President. "SPAR's more than 45 years of maintaining and modernizing some of the oldest C-130s still flying, including Canada's Hercules fleet, has allowed it to develop a unique and independent capacity to solve customers centre wing fatigue issues. This is an exciting day for C-130 operators; the successful centre wing refurbishment offers a cost effective viable alternative to the purchase of new aircraft and new centre wings."

The RNZAF centre wing refurbishment is central to SPAR's Herc 2020(TM) end-to-end total aircraft life extension solution for the C-130 aircraft. It is SPAR's innovative response to C-130 operators faced with ageing aircraft and constrained budgets, permitting them to extend the life of their aircraft by 15 to 20 years at a fraction of the cost of purchasing a new one.

"We selected SPAR for this program because of their C-130 pedigree and the innovative low-risk solution that they came up with to address our fleet modernization requirements," said Ian Gibson, New Zealand Ministry of Defence Project Manager. "We are very happy with the outcome and with the way that SPAR managed the risk on the centre wing refurbishment."

The centre wing refurbishment is part of an extensive six-year Life Extension Program (LEP) awarded to L-3 SPAR in December 2004 by the New Zealand Ministry of Defence, the single most comprehensive avionics, mechanical systems and structural refurbishment program ever performed on a C-130H aircraft. As a result of this program the RNZAF C-130 fleet of five aircraft will be one of the most modern in the world and will be able to safely operate beyond the predicted withdrawal date of 2017.

The project scope includes a comprehensive structural refurbishment program, consisting of structural inspections, modifications and replacements in more than 100 areas of the aircraft; a complete centre wing refurbishment; Fatigue Improvement Modifications (FIM); extensive mechanical systems modifications and replacements, including an upgraded environmental control system; a complete Avionics Upgrade Program, including a GATM compliant glass cockpit, all communications, navigation and warning systems; and rewiring and electrical power distribution modification.

The prototype aircraft is being refurbished at L-3 SPAR's facilities in Edmonton, Canada. Two of the aircraft will be refurbished in Edmonton; the other three will be done in New Zealand. This is the first aircraft to undergo centre wing refurbishment. The refurbishment of the second aircraft's centre wing will begin in Edmonton in August of this year, with the assembly of the all-new lower wing surface.

L-3 SPAR began the first C-130 centre wing refurbishment in January 2007.

A division of New York City-based L-3 Communications, SPAR Aerospace is one of Canada's leading aerospace companies and is a Lockheed Martin approved C-130 Hercules aircraft service centre - the only one in North America outside of Lockheed Martin itself. L-3 SPAR's corporate headquarters are located in Edmonton, Alberta, with additional facilities in Trenton, Ontario and Venice, Italy. With approximately 600 employees across Canada, L-3 SPAR is a globally competitive market leader of MRO and Aircraft Life Extension Solutions for air mobility platforms. L-3 SPAR serves customers from Canada, the United States, Europe, South America, Asia Pacific, Africa and the Middle East. To learn more about L-3 SPAR, please visit the company's web site at www.spar.ca.

Headquartered in New York City, L-3 Communications employs over 63,000 people worldwide and is a prime system contractor in aircraft modernization and maintenance, C(3)ISR (Command, Control, Communications, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance) systems and government services. L-3 is also a leading provider of high technology products, subsystems and systems. The company reported 2006 sales of $12.5 billion.

To learn more about L-3, please visit the company's web site at: www.L-3Com.com

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