BAE System is to open an office in Bahrain to support the contract, announced earlier this year by the Bahrain Defense Force, for the establishment of an indigenous Flying Training School for the Bahrain Defense Force.
The contract forms the final part of a four-phase approach to flying training, comprising pilot selection, basic flying training in Slingsby Firefly aircraft, synthetics and simulation, ultimately leading to Hawk Jet advanced flying training.
The BAE Systems office in Bahrain will be in the capital Manama and is expected to be fully operational within the next few months. Bahrain will become the fifth Hawk aircraft user in the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC).
The contract is constituted under a Government-to-Government Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which underpins the close relationship between the two nations, and particularly between the Royal Bahrain Air Force (RBAF) and Britain's Royal Air Force (RAF).
BAE Systems has major operations across five continents and customers in some 130 countries. The company has 100,000 people and generates annual sales of approximately $18 billion through its wholly-owned and joint venture operations. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
