Contact: Antonia Ferrier (202) 224-5344
Thursday, September 29, 2005

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME) announced today that she has successfully secured $131 million in funding to benefit Maine in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2006 Defense Appropriations bill. This legislation now awaits full consideration by the Senate.

“Maine has long played an essential role in our nation’s defense and the funding in the FY 2006 Defense Appropriations bill reflects our state’s excellence. I am pleased to announce this funding not only because it will benefit Maine, but also America,” said Snowe.

Snowe announced that she secured the following funding in this Appropriations bill to benefit Maine:

· $50 million for the DD(X) Destroyer Program at Bath Iron Works (BIW) for ongoing design and advance procurement requirements associated with the DD(X) destroyer program's second ship to be constructed at BIW.

· $30 million for Pratt and Whitney of North Berwick for new engines for F16s for the Air National Guard.

· $15.5 million for Pratt & Whitney of North Berwick for EC-8 (JointSTARS) Re-Engine Initiative.

· $9.2 million for General Dynamics in Saco for M2HB enhanced .50 caliber machine gun kits for soldiers engaged in combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.

· $3 million to Applied Thermal Sciences (ATS) of Sanford for a small, rapid response Watercraft Propulsion Demonstrator for the Navy.

· $3 million to Telford Aviation of Bangor to continue work on Small Airship Surveillance System for the Army.

· $3 million for Sensor Research Development Corporation (SRD) of Orono to develop technologies for protecting Navy water supplies.

· $3 million to the University of Maine at Orono to continue development of advanced structures and composites in construction for protective structures.

· $3 million for BiODE Corporation of Westbrook to develop an Integrated Oil Debris and Condition Sensor in order to enhance Condition-Based Maintenance for the Army.

· $2.5 million for FMI/Biddeford to begin Integrated Composite Missile Structures, used to initiate THAAD airframe design development.

· $2 million to Technology Systems, Inc. (TSI) in Wiscasset for continued work on a visual integrated bridge system for demonstrations aboard Navy craft.

· $2 million for Vicus in Eastport to demonstrate a low cost avionics program for the Army.

· $1.5 million for Hodgdon Yachts in East Boothbay to produce the Mark V patrol boat replacement craft.

· $1 million for General Dynamics in Saco to manufacture modification kits to support the Marine Corps' use of the MK19 Grenade Machine Gun.

· $1 million for Precision Lightweights Systems in Sanford to implement high performance sandwich panel construction techniques.

· $1 million for Burgess Computers in Bath for the Personal Digital Assistant Maintenance Application Project.

· $300,000 for the U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps.

· Multiyear Procurement authority for the Air Force to purchase additional C-17 Globemaster III aircraft. A portion of the work on this aircraft will be conducted at Pratt and Whitney's North Berwick plant.

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