EADS awarded £1.6m

Glasgow-based optronics business has awarded a £1.6m maintenance services contract to

for its continued support of the MoD's General Purpose Thermal Imager Repair Facility (GPTIRF).

The GPTIRF is a vehicle mounted optronic repair facility used to test and diagnose failures in electro-optical Line Replaceable Units (LRUs) deployed by UK land forces. It supports systems such as the Challenger 2 Main Battle Tank and the Starstreak High Velocity Missile and enables technicians to repair complex armoured fighting vehicle sighting systems in a heated, well-lit, clean environment.

CEO test & services Doug McGinn said: ‘We are delighted to be awarded the contract which will see us playing a key role in the future of GPTIRF, deployed in what are often difficult and challenging circumstances.’

GPTIRF entered service 20 years ago and has been supported by

and

through Post Design Services (PDS) and maintenance contracts. It is expected to be in service until 2035 in line with the equipments it supports.

optronics facility in Glasgow is the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and Design Authority (DA) and

the principal subcontractor. The maintenance part of the contract will cover the next three years and the PDS element will cover two-and-a-half years.