GR9 armed with
Brimstones, Sidewinders
(click to view full)

“Future Contracting for Availability,” involves the removal of traditional “parts and hours” maintenance contracts in favor of fixed-price long-term support for vehicles throughout their service lives, plus performance awards based on number of vehicles available. It has become a fixture in the British defense industry, and a pillar of British procurement policy going forward. As our in-depth coverage of the ATTAC Tornado support contract shows, however, it isn’t a “big bang” process. Smaller contracts are signed for sub-components, trust and knowledge are built up, and the contracts become more comprehensive over time.

BAE Systems has won a number of these contracts, and back in January 2006, DID reported that they were on their way to adding Britain’s Harrier fleet to the list. They’re getting there, slowly.

GR9, Kandahar
(click to view full)

June 24/08: The UK’s Harrier Integrated Project Team (IPT) awards QinetiQ a contract worth almost GBP 24 million over the next 10-years by for Harrier through-life support, through to the Harrier II’s planned Out-of-Service Date in 2018.

Under this contract QinetiQ will provide Independent Technical Services. Three key capability delivery and support areas are included: Independent testing, evaluation and flight test services, capability assurance and technical capability support. QinetiQ release.

March 11/08: Parliament’s “Tenth Report of Session 2007-08, Defence Equipment 2008, HC 295” states that the Royal Navy no longer believes that they will have a carrier’s worth of 36 fully equipped and operational F-35Bs in 2014, when the first 65,000t CVF Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carrier is expected to be ready.

In response, it says that the UK MoD plans to keep the Harrier GR9 in service until around 2018, 2 years after the second ship of class HMS Prince of Wales is expected to enter service.

July 17/07: Britain’s NAO issues its report regarding the new Tornado and Harrier support arrangements. “Transforming logistics support for fast jets” gives the new programs a stamp of approval, and notes that:

• The Tornado and Harrier Integrated Project Team’ costs fell from a total of GBP 711 million in 2001-02 to GBP 328 million in 2006-07, including cumulative savings of GBP 109 million or the Harrier over the period 2001-02 to 2006-07.
• The pulse line at RAF Cottesmore reduced the time taken to perform minor Harrier maintenance by 19% since 2002, and the commencement of the Joint Upgrade and Maintenance Programme at RAF Cottesmore achieved a 43% decrease in the time taken to upgrade Harrier GR7 aircraft to GR9 standard.
• Operational availability of Harrier aircraft was below target before the change. It dropped further in April 2003 with the start of the Harrier upgrade program, but improved as work was transferred to the new depth repair hub at RAF Cottesmore. In the last half of 2006 aircraft availability has been at or close to 100% against a revised target, mainly because there were fewer aircraft under depth repair.
• The new maintenance arrangements that reduced depth repair made an extra 11 aircraft available to the front lines. The Department has also met a significant surge requirement for repair associated with operations in Afghanistan.
• Improved repair processes on the pulse line for the Harrier’s Pegasus engine have reduced turn around times by 59%.

June 6/07: The Harrier Component Support Package is a GBP 34 million contract that builds on the existing Mech 1A Lite contract, and will provide supply chain support for avionics equipment on the new GR9 Harrier IIs until 2014, via the provision of component spares and repairs. The goal, and the metric, is availability – jets ready to fly more often. In the UK MoD release, Captain Paul Bishop, the Harrier in-service support project manager, said that:

“This contract…. takes us closer to the long-term goal of availability contracting at the platform level. [It] also guarantees the continuity of supply for more that 4,000 other components at a significant saving compared to current support arrangements.”

Oct 18/06: Flight International reports that 25 of the UK’s planned 70 GR9 Harriers have now been delivered, and that the type has officially entered operational service.

“The UK’s current GR9s are now available in the so-called Capability B2+ software standard, which includes improved navigation and communication equipment, a ground proximity warning system and the ability to fire the Raytheon AGM-65 Maverick air-to-surface missile. A Capability C release is planned for December, with this to add Raytheon’s Paveway IV precision-guided bomb and a successor identification friend-or-foe system.

Capability D will add MBDA’s Brimstone air-launched anti-armour missile, a Link 16 datalink and cover the digital integration of the Harrier’s current Joint Reconnaissance Pod in 2008. An E-standard software package is also in its assessment phase, to introduce capabilities including a tactical information exchange capability…”

Britain’s revised maintenance approach often involves inserting upgrades during scheduled maintenance times, to reduce costs and improve availability.

Oct 01/06: Flight International reports that BAE Systems is to receive a GBP 400 million ($706 million at current conversion) availability-based contract to provide support for the UK’s Harrier II GR9/9A until the type leaves service around 2018.

The Joint Availability Support Solution (JASS) deal will apparently be agreed with prime contractor BAE by May 2007, following the completion of an assessment phase launched in July 2005. The contract will reportedly have BAE oversee the in-service support of “repairable avionics, structures, general systems components and consumable articles” for the 60-aircraft GR9/9A fleet, while Rolls-Royce will receive a contract to support the Harriers’ Pegasus engines.

Additional Readings

• DID (Jan 16/08) – The UK’s GR9 Harriers to Add ‘Capability E’

• DID (March 5/07) – British Harriers to Get Advanced Targeting Pods

• DID (Sept 29/06) – The Major’s Email: British Harrier Support in Afghanistan, Revisited

• Flight International (May 9/06) – Harrier High