Marshall Aerospace, the Cambridge UK aerospace innovator, has signed an agreement with Lockheed Martin to become the world’s first commercial company to install C-130 Centre Wing Boxes.

Marshall Aerospace is already the only C-130J Heavy Maintenance Centre in the world. While no terms have been disclosed the deal will underpin job opportunities and bring a lucrative cash payback to the Cambridge specialist.

Many C-130s around the world can have their service life extended by having the Centre Wing Box replaced. As the main load-bearing component of the C-130’s airframe, it is this structure that usually determines the overall operational life of the aircraft.

The news came out of the Farnborough air show and Steve Fitz-Gerald, CEO Marshall Aerospace, said: “We are delighted and extremely proud of our longstanding relationship with Lockheed Martin.

“It is an honour to become the world's first commercial OEM approved service centre for the C-130J centre wing box replacement. Together with our existing unique C-130J HMC status, the enhancement of centre wing box replacement approval will position us perfectly for long-term C-130J global fleet sustainment.

“This is a significant milestone for Marshall, and builds on our solid reputation for providing innovative engineering solutions.”

Jim Grant, Lockheed Martin’s vice president for Air Mobility said at today’s signing ceremony: “As we see the C-130J Super Hercules global fleet expanding and the demand for the C‑130J remaining strong we need to expand our specialised support network around the world.

“Marshall Aerospace has unrivalled capability in maintenance, repair and overhaul across all variants of the C-130 platform, including the C-130J Super Hercules, and we are proud of our relationship with them that has spanned many decades.”

Marshall Group has also made an investment of around £5 million in Yorkshire company Marshall Slingsby Advanced Composites to bring in new capabilities that meet growing demands for advanced composite structures in the aerospace and defence sectors.

The investment will enable the procurement of high value manufacturing and test equipment and related design tools. Marshall Group says development and training in emerging processing techniques is also planned to support a wide range of composite engineered solutions.