20 mai 2015 by Lockheed Martin

15.05.2015 par Info-Aviation
 

Les forces aériennes de Roumanie et de Thaïlande vont devenir les 18e et 19e clients du pod de ciblage AN/AAQ-33 Sniper XR (ATP) a annoncé Lockheed Martin le 11 mai. L’avionneur américain travaillerait en outre avec Dassault Aviation pour intégrer le Sniper ATP sur le Rafale.

Le Sniper ATP est équipé d’un imageur thermique infrarouge à ondes moyennes (MWIR), d’une caméra haute définition, d’un télémètre laser, d’un marquage laser et d’un tracker. Sa configuration peut varier en fonction des exigences de chaque client.

Les capteurs du Sniper ATP fournissent aux pilotes une image haute résolution pour le ciblage de précision dans le cadre des missions ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance et Reconnaissance). Il est capable de détecter, d’identifier, et de suivre automatiquement par laser des petites cibles tactiques à longue portée. Il permet aussi l’utilisation d’armes à guidage par laser et GPS contre des cibles multiples et mobiles.

Une photographie publiée en couverture de IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly du 6 mai montre le Rafale transportant un Sniper ATP sous son pylône central. L’Egypte, qui a récemment commandé le Rafale, a déjà des Sniper dans son inventaire pour ses F-16.

« Le pod visible sur la photo semble être un Sniper ATP, mais il s’agit d’un photo-montage pour illustrer la collaboration entre Lockheed Martin et Dassault pour des essais d’intégration du Sniper ATP sur le Rafale. », a commenté un responsable de Lockheed Martin. Dassault Aviation n’a pas souhaité commenté cette information de son coté.

La quantité exacte de Sniper achetés par la Roumanie ou la Thaïlande n’est pas connue. On sait juste qu’un logiciel spécifique pour leur intégration sera développé à Orlando, en Floride, dans l’usine de Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control (LMMFC).

La Thaïlande va intégrer le Sniper ATP sur ses F-16 A/B Bloc 15 qui sont actuellement modernisés en configuration MLU (Mid-Life Upgrade). La Royal Thai Air Force comprend 39 F-16A et 14 F-16B biplace.

Les F-16 de la Force aérienne roumaine, eux, n’ont pas encore été livrés par le Portugal qui doit fournir neuf F-16A et trois F-16B actuellement en cours de modernisation à la norme MLU M5.2 par OGMA. L’intégration du Sniper sera effectuée avant la livraison à la Roumanie en 2016.

20 avr. 2015 by Lockheed Martin

Mar. 23, 2015 By: Dan Parsons - FG

Washington DC - The overall cost of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II programme will come in at about $7.5 billion less than previously expected, according to the 2015 selected acquisition report (SAR).

Released on 18 March, the report indicates that research, development, test and evaluation cost remains unchanged at $54.9 billion, but that procurement costs declined by $7.7 billion, to $331 billion. The F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) says the reduction was primarily due to decreased labour costs.

While the SAR reports that the operating and support (O&S) costs of the F-35 over its service life remain nearly $1 trillion – the cost assessment programme evaluation that authors the SAR does not adjust O&S figures until a major milestone is reached – the JPO claims its revised cost estimate for this metric showed a $57.8 billion reduction from 2014, bringing the overall figure to $859 billion.

Lockheed's F-35 programme general manager, Lorraine Martin, says the company has reduced O&S costs for the F-35 by $60 billion in the past year alone.

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22.03.2015 par Philippe Chapleau - Lignes de Défense
 

Après le retour en Europe des Abrams et des Bradley, le soutien !

Le Pentagone a annoncé vendredi soir que le soutien des unités mécanisées récemment déployées en Allemagne (voir mon post ici) va être externalisé. Defense Support Services a décroché un premier contrat d'un an, d'une valeur de 54 millions de $.

DSS, fondée en 2004 par Lockheed Martin et Day & Zimmermann, appartient depuis 2011 à Pacific Architects and Engineers Incorporated (PAE). Lire ici un communiqué de presse de PAE.

La prestation aura lieu sur la base aérienne de Coleman Barrcks qui devait fermer. Mais en février dernier, il a été annoncé (lire ici) que ces installations vont rester actives et accueillir les équipements de la brigade blindée US tournante déployée dans le cadre de l'U.S. Army Regionally Aligned Forces. 800 véhicules y seront stockés.

L'avis:
 

20 March 2015 airforce-technology.com

Textron Systems Electronic Systems has been awarded a contract to supply advanced, handheld radar simulators for electronic warfare (EW) preflight testing on all variants of the F-35 Lightning II aircraft.

The contract was awarded by Lockheed Martin. It requires the company to supply its Model 527 radar signal simulator, which is designed for end-of-runway and walk-around pre-flight testing, to determine the status of installed electronic warfare (EW) radar warning receiver systems.

Specifically, the system verifies operational readiness and threat recognition across antennas, transmission lines, radomes, cockpit displays, and controls on operational aircraft through free-space radiation functional testing.

Textron Systems Electronic Systems senior vice-president and general manager Steve Mensh said: "The F-35 is one of the world's most advanced tactical aircraft, designed to deliver powerful new capabilities to the warfighter.

"Our Model 527 and larger family of pre-flight testers give aircrews the confidence they need in their mission-critical systems, before they even leave the ground."

The advanced threat modelling software enables a variety of threat simulations including simple, continuous-wave, pulsed single emitters, and multiplexed radio frequency emitters that can model several threats simultaneously.

After the simulations have been developed within the system, soldiers can easily progress through them on the flight line with a thumb switch to verify aircraft operation.

The battery-powered system is fully compatible with the company's family of pre-flight confidence testers, such as the joint service electronic combat systems tester and the advanced architecture phase, amplitude and time simulator laboratory electromagnetic environment simulator.

Deliveries under the indefinite-delivery / indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract are scheduled take place over the next three years.

The F-35 is manufactured by Lockheed. It is a fifth-generation multi-role fighter, and is designed to conduct a wide range of ground attack, reconnaissance, and air defence missions with stealth capability.

Mar 17, 2015 ASDNews Source : Harris Corporation

Two unfurlable mesh antenna reflectors developed by Harris Corporation have successfully deployed onboard the third Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) satellite built by Lockheed Martin. This represents the fifth and sixth successful Harris reflector deployments in the planned 5-satellite MUOS system. The announcement was made during Satellite 2015 being held March 16-19 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.

The MUOS satellite constellation operates like a smart phone network in the sky, vastly improving current secure mobile satellite communications for warfighters on the move. Unlike previous systems, MUOS provides users and on-demand, beyond-line-of-sight capability to transmit and receive high-quality, prioritized voice and mission data, on a high-speed IP-based system. Once fully deployed, MUOS will be compatible with, but provide 16-times the capacity of the legacy UHF satellite system.

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16/03/2015 Vincent Lamigeon – Challenges.fr

Un chiffre d’affaires en berne, mais des prises de commandes record. MBDA, le missilier européen codétenu par Airbus Group,  BAE et Finmeccanica, a présenté ce lundi 16 mars des résultats 2014 contrastés, mais encourageants. Le point négatif, c’est évidemment le chiffre d’affaires : à 2,4 milliards d’euros, il baisse de 14% par rapport à 2013, du fait de la contraction des budgets de défense européens. « Un point bas qui était prévu, et totalement conforme à nos objectifs, assure Antoine Bouvier, PDG du groupe. Le chiffre d'affaires devrait connaître une remontée significative dès 2015 sous l'effet des prises de commandes exceptionnelles enregistrées ces deux dernières années. »

Car, et c’est le point positif, MBDA a réussi deux superbes années en termes commerciaux, avec 4,1 milliards d’euros de contrats décrochés en 2014, dont 2,5 milliards à l’export, avec des succès en Inde (missiles air-air ASRAAM sur les antiques Jaguar, Exocet pour le Brésil, et le contrat de missiles Meteor pour les Eurofighter saoudiens, révélé par la Tribune début février). Le carnet de commandes atteint désormais 12,6 milliards d’euros, soit quatre ans de production. Et 2015 a commencé très fort avec la commande de Rafale et de frégates FREMM en Egypte, dont la part MBDA dépasse le milliard d’euros.

Le champion européen des missiles, un des trois géants mondiaux du secteur avec les américains Raytheon et Lockheed Martin, est donc en passe de réussir son pari : compenser la baisse des commandes des clients traditionnels (France et Royaume-Uni, notamment) grâce à l’export. « Pour la première fois, la part de notre carnet de commandes hors d’Europe dépasse celle des clients européens », souligne Antoine Bouvier. MBDA estime être à peu près à égalité sur les missiles tactiques avec ses deux rivaux américains, avec une part de marché de 20 à 25%. Et des compétitions majeures sont encore à gagner : système de défense aérienne en Pologne, en Turquie, contrat indien de missiles sol-air SRSAM…

L’autre pari du groupe était tout aussi osé : accepter, notamment en France, une baisse des livraisons sur les équipements actuels, pour privilégier les lancements de nouveaux programmes. Là encore, la recette semble efficace : douloureuse au départ (350 millions d’euros de crédits de paiements encaissés en France en 2014, contre 500 millions en 2013), elle a permis de lancer le successeur du Milan, le missile antichar MMP (missile moyenne portée), le missile franco-britannique ANL (anti-navire léger) ou encore le nouvel Aster Block 1NT, un programme franco-italien.

Mar 12, 2015 ASDNews Source : Lockheed Martin Corporation

History was achieved today when the first Italian F-35A Lightning II rolled out of the Cameri Final Assembly and Check Out (FACO) facility, marking the first F-35A assembled internationally and the first of eight aircraft currently being assembled. The aircraft, designated as AL-1, will now proceed to additional check-out activities before its anticipated first flight later this year.

The rollout exhibits the ongoing strong partnership between the Italian Ministry of Defense, industry partner Finmeccanica-Alenia Aermacchi, and Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT]. The Italian FACO is owned by the Italian Ministry of Defense and is operated by Alenia Aermacchi in conjunction with Lockheed Martin with a current workforce of more than 750 skilled personnel engaged in F-35 aircraft and wing production.

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March 9th, 2015 By US Defense Security Cooperation Agency

The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to Jordan for M31 Unitary Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (GMLRS) Rocket Pods and associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $192 million. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale on March 4, 2015.

The Government of Jordan has requested a possible sale of 72 M31 Unitary Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (GMLRS) Rocket Pods (6 rockets per pod for a total of 432), support equipment, spare and repair parts, publications and technical data, personnel training and equipment, systems integration support, U.S. Government and contractor engineering and logistics personnel services, and other related elements of logistics support. The estimated cost is $192 million.

This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the U.S. by helping to improve the security of a partner country that has been and continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress in the Middle East. It is vital to the U.S. national interest that Jordan develops and maintains a strong and ready self-defense capability. This proposed sale is consistent with the U.S. regional objectives and will not impact the regional stability in the Middle East.

The proposed sale of GMLRS will improve Jordan’s capability to meet current and future threats on its borders and provide greater security for its economic infrastructure. The GMLRS will provide the Royal Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF) a long-range precision artillery support capability that will significantly improve U.S.-JAF interoperability and provide for the defense of vital installations. Jordan will have no difficulty absorbing these additional systems into its armed forces.

The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

The principal contractor will be Lockheed Martin Missile and Fire Control in Dallas, Texas. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.

Implementation of this sale will not require the assignment of any additional U.S. Government or contractor representatives to Jordan.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

From left: Peter Hillier, Karen Eilbmeier, and Michael Spurr from the Canada Department of National Defence were on hand to commemorate the reopening of the P-3 wing line at Marietta, Georgia.

MARIETTA, Ga., March 5, 2015 – Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] restarted the wing production line for the P-3 Orion Mid-Life Upgrade (MLU) program for Canada and Chile on March 4.

The P-3 wing line was last in production in August 2014. The gap in production extended the opportunities for global operators to assess their fleet needs.

“We are very excited about restarting the wing line here in Marietta and we are very proud of the partnership with Canada and Chile,” said Mark Jarvis, P-3 program manager. “We look forward to building wings for the many P-3 operators across the globe.”

The MLU replaces the outer wings, center wing, horizontal stabilizer and horizontal stabilizer leading edges.  All necessary fatigue life-limiting structures are replaced, leading to significantly reduced maintenance and sustainment costs.  New alloys are employed that provide a five-fold increase in corrosion resistance.

The P-3 Orion plays a vital role in maritime intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, drug interdiction, hurricane hunting, fire-fighting and anti-submarine surveillance. Due to the MLU, it will support operators for 20-25 more years.

“The P-3 Orion is the gold standard in maritime reconnaissance,” said Jarvis, “We are excited to keep this venerable workhorse flying for many years to come.”

In addition to Canada and Chile, other MLU customers include U.S. Customs & Border Protection, the U.S. Navy and Norway.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 112,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The Corporation’s net sales for 2014 were $45.6 billion.