San Diego-based Harper Construction Company Inc. has been awarded more than $45 million for the construction of the P-284 F-35C maintenance hangar at Naval Air Station, Lemoore, California.

A construction company has received a new contract for construction of a two-module Type I aircraft maintenance hangar, associated airfield pavements, operational and munitions storage, renovation of an existing battery shop, and building a new tool room.  The project provides temporary facilities.

Once complete, the hangar will maintain F-35C Lightning II aircraft and will be used to educate personnel on F-35 maintenance procedures.

The project, located on Naval Air Station Lemoore in Kings County and Fresno County, California, will support the incoming F-35s aircraft and is set to be completed by November 2021.

This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website with five proposals received, according to a statement issued Monday by the U.S. Department of Defense.

The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, is the contracting activity.

As to the F-35C Lightning II, this is a carrier-based 5th generation fighter jet.

F-35C combines this unique capability of operating from a carrier deck with the unmatched 5th Generation capabilities of stealth, fused sensors and reliability, making the F-35C the U.S. Navy’s future first-day-of-the-war strike fighter.