CP Technologies (formerly known as Chassis Plans) announced it has been awarded a contract to modernize and update the mission control computers in the P3B Orion aircraft used by the Hellenic Navy and Air Force.
The contract was awarded to CP Technologies last year and was prototyped in 12 weeks. CP Technologies now said it would continue to support the program until the expiration of the contract in 2025.
The HAF had five P-3Bs that had been in service since 1996. Assigned to the 353 Squadron based at Elefsis near Athens, these aircraft had been in storage pending a decision on the proposed Mid Life Upgrades (MLU).
The modernization plan is a 7-year program and includes the maintenance and support of five of the six P-3B Orion turbo-prop aircraft transferred to Greece by the United States during 1991 and 1992. In 2014, the US State Department approved a Foreign Military Sale to Greece for P-3B aircraft overhaul and upgrade as well as associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $500 million.
CP Technologies’ mission computers are used in the ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance) consoles onboard the aircraft and were designed to offer advanced computing technology in order to accommodate new ISR capabilities in the rough aircraft environment like Advance map rendering and GPS tracking, sensor and surveillance data analysis.
The mid-life upgrade of the Greek P-3Bs is led by Lockheed Martin and Hellenic Aerospace Industry (HAI). Once they undergo the refit and upgrades, the P-3Bs will each be fit for another 15,000 flight hours.