Monday, January 15, 2007

Raytheon Aircraft wins $70M USAF parts deal

The U.S. Department of Defense reports it has awarded a $70 million contract to Kansas-based Raytheon Aircraft Co.

The project to provide aircraft parts is expected to be completed by June 2008. The Headquarters Air Force Materiel Command, based at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio is the contractor.

In December 2006, Waltham-based Raytheon Co. disclosed its plans to sell its Wichita, Kan.-based subsidiary to Hawker Beechcraft Corp. for $3.3 billion. The acquisition is expected to close during the first half of 2007, according to Raytheon company reports.

Hawker Beechcraft Corp. is a new company formed by The GS Capital Partners Funds -- an affiliate of New York-based The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. -- and Canada-based Onex Corp.

Raytheon Aircraft Co. was founded in 1932 and reported 2005 sales of $2.9 billion. The company employed 8,500 people worldwide, with 6,000 employees based in Wichita. Government defense contractor Raytheon supplies hardware and technical services to the military, space, information technology, and aircraft industries. The company reported annual sales of $21.9 billion in 2005 and employs a global work force of 80,000 people.