Honeywell Wins $1.04 Billion U.S. Air Force Power Systems Contract

November 2, 2018

William Kucinski

F-16 Fighting Falcon pilots prepare for takeoff and close air support training at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, November 6, 2016. (Image source: USAF)

The U.S. Air Force awarded Phoenix-based Honeywell Aerospace with an exclusive $1,036,726,575 performance-based sustainment contract to provide end-to-end logistics support for secondary power systems and ground based auxiliary power systems for multiple aircraft types.

Honeywell Aerospace will support secondary power systems and ground systems for seven aircraft types operated by the U.S. Air Force:

McDonnel Douglas F-15 Eagle tactical fighter – now manufactured and supported by Boeing Defense, Space & Security (Boeing)
General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon multirole fighter – now manufactured and supported by Lockheed Martin Corporation
Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II close air support and attack aircraft – now supported by Northrop Grumman
Rockwell B-1B Lancer heavy bomber – now supported by Boeing
Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit stealth bomber
Boeing E-3 Sentry airborne early warning and control aircraft
Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules transport aircraft

Secondary power systems, or auxiliary power units (APUs), are turbine engines that provide pneumatic and shaft power that can be used to start an aircraft’s main propulsion engines. They also provide electrical and hydraulic power for critical aircraft systems on the ground and in flight.

Honeywell engineers developed the first auxiliary power system in the mid-1940s and the company has produced more than 95,000 to-date for a wide range of military and civilian aircraft. The company is the largest gas turbine APU producer, with more than 36,000 APUs currently in service that support power requirements ranging from 50 equivalent shaft horsepower (SHP) up to 1,700 equivalent SHP.

“We’re excited about this opportunity to continue a highly successful public-private partnership with the Air Force,” says Steven Williams, Honeywell vice president for Defense & Space Americas Aftermarket. “Over the past decade, we have built a strong team with the Air Force and DLA teams, which have enabled Honeywell to deliver superior results, including dramatic improvements in availability rates and backorders. These and other improvements have resulted in significant cost-savings for the Air Force and the American taxpayer.”

The three-year, six-month base contract was announced by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) and includes an option for an additional three-year, six-month term, for a potential total length of 10 years. The contract completion date is July 31, 2028.

The contract includes provisions for hardware such as ground stage carts, miscellaneous F-15 components, F-16 turbine power units, and A-10, B-1B, B-2, E-3, and C-130 APUs. Honeywell Aerospace’s Phoenix office will manage the contract while performing the majority of turbine engine support work in Utah.

The Secondary Power Logistical Solutions Program was the Air Force’s first subsystem-level Performance Based Logistics (PBL) program – also known as Performance Based Life Cycle Product Support. PBLs are an outcome-based product support strategy for the development and implementation of an integrated, affordable, product support package. They are designed to optimize system readiness and meet military requirements in terms of performance outcomes for a system through long-term product support arrangements with clear lines of authority and responsibility.

Honeywell received a PBL of the Year award for its work on the program in 2017.

William Kucinski is content editor at SAE International, Aerospace Products Group in Warrendale, Pa. Previously, he worked as a writer at the NASA Safety Center in Cleveland, Ohio and was responsible for writing the agency’s System Failure Case Studies. His interests include literally anything that has to do with space, past and present military aircraft, and propulsion technology.

Contact him regarding any article or collaboration ideas by e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..