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Boeing Wins USAF Contract to Modernize C-17A Flight Decks With Open-Architecture Avionics

A modular open architecture targets avionics obsolescence to enable rapid, lower-cost upgrades through 2075.

Overview

  • Boeing’s award covers design, manufacture, integration, qualification and military certification of the upgraded C-17A flight deck.
  • The modernization replaces legacy avionics with a Modular Open Systems Architecture that supports plug-and-play hardware and software enhancements.
  • The approach is intended to speed technology refreshes and maintain interoperability across a virtual fleet spanning nine partner nations.
  • The upgrade aligns with Air Mobility Command plans that keep the C-17 in service until 2075 while next-generation airlift programs progress.
  • Boeing delivered 275 C-17As from 1993 to 2015—222 to the U.S. Air Force and 53 to international partners—and separately selected Curtiss-Wright to supply MOSA-aligned mission computers in a deal estimated to exceed $400 million over its lifetime.