L-3 Communications announced today that its Platform Integration division has been approved to begin low-rate initial production (LRIP) of the U.S. Navy’s EP-3E Spiral 3-configured aircraft, featuring an upgraded intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) mission avionics suite. Under the LRIP program, L-3 will manufacture and install this new capability on three EP-3E aircraft.
The successful completion of developmental testing using the L-3-modified prototype EP-3E Spiral 3-configured aircraft provided the basis for the Navy’s LRIP decision. The operational test phase of this project is currently underway, after which a full-rate production decision will be made regarding the modifications of the remaining aircraft in the EP-3E fleet to the Spiral 3 configuration.
