Mon, Nov 21, 2011
Aircraft Based On The Same Airframe As U.S. Coast Guard's
HC-144a Ocean Sentry
EADS North America has delivered the first of four Airbus
Military CN235-300 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) it will supply to
the Mexican Navy. The program is a foreign military sales contract
managed by the U.S. Coast Guard. The Coast Guard uses a
configuration of this same twin-engine aircraft -- the HC-144A
Ocean Sentry -- for its own patrol, surveillance, transport and
disaster relief mission duties.
This is the first U.S. foreign military sale for the highly
successful CN235 tactical airlifter family produced by Airbus
Military, a business unit of EADS. Under the $157.6 million order,
EADS North America will also supply spares provisioning, ground
support equipment and associated training. "This airframe is
performing exceptionally in a wide range of missions for the U.S.
Coast Guard, and we're proud to serve our country's national
interests by supporting the Mexican Navy with a great capability as
well," said Sean O'Keefe, EADS North America CEO.
The new CN235-300 MPAs will further strengthen Mexico's ability
to support the Mérida Initiative, a cooperative security
arrangement between the U.S., Mexico and Central American
countries. Duties for the new aircraft include homeland security,
search and rescue, military readiness, cargo and personnel
transport, drug interdiction and maritime environmental
protection.
This CN235 in MPA configuration incorporates the latest
technology developed for surveillance over the sea. The combination
of a Forward Looking Infra Red (FLIR) system and search radar
allows the aircraft to locate and track ships to conduct thorough
patrols of a coastline. The Automatic Identification System (AIS)
and the Fully Integrated Tactical System (FITS) help make this
aircraft the ideal tool to carry out military surveillance missions
for the Mexican Navy. The FITS was developed by Airbus Military and
ensures that the extensive data gathered by the aircraft's on-board
sensors can be easily used by the crew to execute their
mission.
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