Harris Corporation has received a C$273m (US$268m) contract from the Government of Canada for the CF-18 avionics optimised weapon system support (OWSS) programme.

Under the contract, Harris Canada will provide repair and overhaul, engineering support, programme management, lifecycle support, and obsolescence and material management services to support the avionics systems on the CF-18 Hornet fighter aircraft.

The contract is for a six-year period with three additional option years and will be in effect until the end of the CF-18 Hornet fighter aircraft life expectancy in 2020.

The Canadian Government has proposed replacing the CF-18 fighter jets with 65 new F-35 jets from Lockheed Martin for C$9bn (US$8.8bn).