Industry
USAF F-16s to be Maintained in Poland
A consortium led by AAR Government Services, also involving the Polish WZL No. 2 facility based in Bydgoszcz, was awarded a contract concerning support for the US Air Force Life Cycle Management Center based at the Hill AFB in Utah - US Department of Defense announced. This refers to the maintenance of the US F-16C/D MRCA, and the procedures would also concern the general overhauls and SLEP programme - (Service Life Extension Program).
The contract has a value of USD 365 million, and it is to cover work until 2032. The DoD announced that the works would be taking place at the WZL-2 facility in Bydgoszcz, in Droogdokkeneilan (the Netherlands), and Clearfield, in the US.
We had reported earlier that a consortium formed by AAR, WZL No. 2, and Daedalus Aviation Group placed a bid to secure a USAFE F-16 maintenance contract. All signs suggest that the present announcement refers to the aforesaid deal. US-PL-NL consortium was competing against the Belgian Sabca company.
Winning this tender is a major success for WZL-2, as the facility in question has been expanding its portfolio when it comes to the F-16C/D aircraft. This is relevant as most of the works covered by the contract were to be carried out in Poland.
The works and the generated revenue may potentially be used by WZL-2 to further develop the expertise related to maintenance services concerning the F-16s. This, in turn, may lead to further, international orders.
The event seems to be aligned with another news published in recent weeks - the PZL Mielec facility has begun to manufacture airframe structures for the F-16.