F-35 Progress
NGC Achieves Two Major F-35 Production Milestones, Continues Record of On-Time, On Cost Performance
(Palmdale, Calif., October 26, 2007) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) today completed the center fuselage for the first weight-optimized Air Force F-35 Lightning II aircraft -- a conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) variant designated AF-1.
The milestone comes just 24 hours after the company officially began the first phase of F-35 low rate initial production by starting the fabrication of a single-piece, all-composite inlet duct for the Air Force's first production F-35. That duct is being produced at Northrop Grumman's composites manufacturing center in El Segundo, Calif.
The company celebrated the AF-1 production milestone with a ceremony at its F-35 assembly facility in Palmdale, Calif. The ceremony, which coincided with today's sixth anniversary of the awarding of the original F-35 system development and demonstration prime contract, was attended by Northrop Grumman employees and executives from Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Department of Defense's F-35 Lightning II Program Office.
"The completion of the AF-1 center fuselage on schedule and on cost reinforces Northrop Grumman's commitment to help our customers field the most reliable, versatile and affordable 5th generation fighter," said Janis Pamiljans, F-35 program manager for Northrop Grumman's Integrated Systems sector. "Our disciplined production and assembly processes help ensure the quality and reliability of this multi-role aircraft for U.S. warfighters and our international F-35 partners."
The AF-1 center fuselage is one of 19 center fuselages Northrop Grumman is producing for the current system development and demonstration (SDD) phase of the F-35 Lightning II program. To date, the company has delivered center fuselages for six F-35 aircraft, including AA-1, the first F-35 aircraft to fly; and BF-1, the first F-35 short take-off/vertical landing (STOVL) variant. BF-1 will be the first F-35 to be delivered to the U.S. Marine Corps.
"Meeting these key program production commitments on time helps ensure that the F-35 Lightning II will enter the U.S. Air Force inventory as scheduled in 2013," said Major General Charles R. Davis, the Defense Department's F-35 Program Executive Officer. "The F-35 will provide the service with a powerful, multi-role fighter that will dovetail seamlessly with the versatile F-22, allowing the Air Force to continue operating effectively and decisively in high threat environments against increasingly sophisticated enemies."
Source : Northrop Grumman Corporation
LM F-35 Program Achieves Critical Milestone - STOVL Variant Completes Successful "Power On"
(Fort Worth, Texas, October 26, 2007) -- Electrical power was applied to the Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] F-35B Lightning II for the first time Thursday night, initiating a series of ground tests that will lead to the inaugural flight of the short-takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) stealth fighter next spring.
"The successful 'power-on' demonstrates that the integration of this unique aircraft is progressing to plan. It signals that production of our first F-35B Lightning II is on track for first flight next year, a key step toward realizing the aviation future of the U.S. Marines, the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy," said Dan Crowley, Lockheed Martin executive vice president and F-35 program general manager. The aircraft is scheduled to roll out of the factory in December.
The F-35 will be the most electronically advanced aircraft ever built, with capabilities unavailable in current multi-role fighters. The F-35B's power-on is an incremental process of testing the aircraft's circuits, electronic components and wiring.
"This event is one of the major milestones in the life of the STOVL aircraft and we have eagerly anticipated it for some time," said Maj. Gen. C.R. Davis, F-35 program executive officer. "The F-35 has the most complex electrical system of any fighter to date. We had great success with the first jet we flew, but that jet taught us some very important lessons about its electrical system and those lessons have been incorporated into the jet we powered up today. So congrats to the team and on to first flight."
Source : Lockheed Martin