Will Apply Principles Developed For Commercial Engines To Military Powerplants

The U.S Department of Defense has awarded a $50.7 million MissionCare contract extension to Rolls-Royce to provide continued support for the F405 (Adour) engines that power the U.S. Navy's T-45 training aircraft.

The contract extension will continue the successful MissionCare support which has provided the US Navy's training fleet with guaranteed availability over the past ten years. Rolls-Royce uses its innovative MissionCare to apply commercial “Power by the Hour” principles to the unique requirements of the defense industry, resulting in affordable, predictable service costs for customers.

"Rolls-Royce MissionCare delivers affordability and availability through innovative service to our customers," said Paul Craig, Rolls-Royce, President - Defense Services. "The US Navy contract has proven to be one of our most successful partnerships and we take great pride in supporting the training of new aviators for the Navy and Marine Corps. Globally, the Adour engine fleet has amassed more than 8.6 million flight hours of proven success in the field and serves military customers around the world in meeting a variety of missions. The Adour is an industry leader in low-risk, affordable engine performance for military aircraft."
 
In addition to powering the T-45 Goshawk and other military aircraft, the Adour engine will also power the Hawk AJTS aircraft, which is a contender for the US Air Force T-X trainer program.

Under the terms of the agreement, which is administered by the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), Rolls-Royce will provide total inventory control, as well as integrated logistics support and required engineering elements for both the F405 engine and the aircraft gas turbine starting system. This includes support ranging from on-wing through intermediate and depot level maintenance. The contract will run through March 2014.
 
This contract provides comprehensive propulsion services to more than 200 aircraft, operating at four main Naval Air Stations - Kingsville, Texas; Meridian, Mississippi; Pensacola, Florida; and Patuxent River, Maryland.

(Top image provided by Rolls-Royce. T-45 aircraft pictured in U.S. Navy photo)

FMI: www.rolls-royce.com