Canadian Firm Wins $100M Maritime Reconnaissance Contract from Dutch

Dash-8 in Dutch colors(click to view full) In the fall of 2003, the Dutch government announced the retirement and sale of its P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft fleet, including 2 aircraft stationed at Curacao that flew missions for the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba. The Orions were sold to Germany (8) and Portugal (5), but their services needed to be replaced. Australia’s contracted public-private Coastwatch approach offers a solid model for such situations, and now similar Dash-8 aircraft with maritime patrol mission suites will be operating in the Caribbean – operated and managed by a private Canadian firm. Dash-8 Q300 MPA interior(click to view full) Provincial Airlines, a subsidiary of Provincial Aerospace Ltd. in Newfoundland, Canada, has won a USD $100-million contract to supply reconnaissance aircraft and services in the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba for 10 years. The 2 Dash-8 aircraft will be purchased, outfitted, and operated by Provincial airlines; they will be used to save lives at sea, track down offenders on environmental, economic, and fisheries matters, and intercept drug transports in the Caribbean Sea. The St. John’s-based aerospace and defence contracting company has over 25 years’ experience in air reconnaissance operations, and maintains other bases in Barbados & Trinidad […]