The U.S. Army has awarded Textron Aviation a contract for three special mission Beechcraft King Air turboprops as part of an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract in support of foreign military sales (FMS), the company has announced.
The IDIQ for the Cessna SkyCourier, Cessna Grand Caravan EX, and Beechcraft King Air 360/ Beechcraft King Air 260—all designed and manufactured by Textron—is valued at up to $100 million over the span of five years.Â
According to the manufacturer, the initial award is for three King Air 360 Extended Range (KA360ER) aircraft that are slated to perform maritime patrols. Two of the aircraft will be purchased by the Peruvian Naval Aviation Force and one by the Ecuadorian Naval Aviation Force.
“This IDIQ aligns with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s recent tasking memo directing improvement and acceleration of DOD’s institutional processes to execute FMS cases,” said Bob Gibbs, vice president of special mission sales for Textron Aviation. “It will provide highly capable commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) aircraft that can be equipped with COTS-releasable technology, and it will accelerate acquisition and contracting timelines from many months or years to weeks.”
