Northrop Grumman unveils fuselage for next U.S. fighter

Valley Press on ^ | Saturday, October 27, 2007. | ALLISON GATLIN

[BenLurkin]

PALMDALE - Six years after the contract was first awarded, Northrop Grumman Corp. employees Friday marked another milestone along the path to fielding the nation's next fighter, the F-35 Lightning II. The center fuselage for the first Air Force near-production version of the fighter was unveiled Friday at the company's Palmdale Manufacturing Center.

The fuselage incorporates design changes made during development to decrease weight in the final fighter.

"This is starting a new phase for what will be a very unique fighter capability," said Air Force Maj. Gen. C.R. Davis, program executive officer for the F-35.

The latest - and possibly last - manned fighter for the nation's armed services is envisioned as a truly joint-service fighter, with three variations of the same basic aircraft to meet the needs of the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps.

It also is an international program, with nine countries actively participating in the development and more expected to purchase the aircraft when completed.

The F-35 is expected to replace many other aging aircraft, including the A-10, F-14, F-16 and AV-8B Harrier. In the United Kingdom, it will replace the Harrier aircraft for the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force.

The fuselages for all three versions of the F-35 are manufactured at Northrop's center at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale.

They are then shipped to the Fort Worth, Texas, facility of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, the program's prime contractor, for final assembly.

"Today marks a momentous day for Lockheed Martin and the F-35 Lightning II program," said Bobby Williams, F-35 deputy program manager for Lockheed Martin Aeronautics. The fuselage is "the first of literally thousands" that will head to Fort Worth to become fighters, he said.

[CyberAnt]

The Lost Squadron - I have the video. Amazing story.

During WWII - my dad helped to build the P-38. It’s always been my favorite aircraft.

[kAcknor]

[Stonewall Jackson]

I'd love to see them reopen the A-10 production line. I know that Rockwell Aviation has gone out of business in the years since the last A-10 was built, but Boeing purchased most of their assets and Lockheed-Martin is upgrading the A-10's to the new C model.

I went up to the Air Force Museum in Dayton last fall and saw a couple of A-10's doing some touch-and-goes at Wright-Patterson. They'd scream over us at just a few hundred feet, which was just WOW!!! After about fifteen or twenty minutes of this, they flew over us one last time, waggled their wings in farewell, and headed off toward the north. I managed to snap about a dozen good pictures of them as they were showing off. I'll post them, if I can find them.

[Bean Counter]

Where’s the tailhook?

[norton]

"The Brits might have put Merlins in their P-38’s"

Don't think so, the supercharged Allisons worked fine and there were other places for the Merlins to go.

P-40 "F" and "L" ran Merlins without much improvement in performance...Google tells me that those were later re-engined back to the Allison.

[Pistolshot]

They shot down Yammamoto off Bougainville.

[norton]

McDonnell bought Douglas, Boeing bought McDonnell-Douglas as well as Rockwell (B-1) which had previously picked up North American (F-86).

Northrup-Grumman bought TRW.

PS: Boeing built a pot load of fighters between the wars. One of the first kills in WWII was by a Philippine NG P-26 on December 8th.

[norton]

That’d be Northrop...

[Kozak]

Yea, right. That has been parroted for decades. Isn't going to happen.

Oh it be happenin'. The abilities of RPV's and drones is growing by leaps and bounds. Between costs, reluctance to lose pilots and the limitations imposed on performance by fragile humans it's coming soon.

Speaking as a former USAF member with time as an F-4 crewman.

[wita]

Hmmmm? You and I seem to have a few glaring similarities vis-a-vis this thread. We possibly share a birth year, and freerepublic birth year, knowing where we were when six years of age, love of old airplanes, the Texas flag, the only difference is I knew why I was in Germany in 1946. Your airplane memory overshadows your reason for being at the Ponca City Airport, except for the fact you couldn’t drive, so I’m betting you were there with parents which mirrors my reason for being in Germany.

I too would love to have one, (Lightning) but who can afford the parts the fuel, the maintenance, the etc. Next best thing, a yearly trip to Oshkosh, WI. To see and drool over the few that remain, and know that somewhere somehow, there are people who not only want one, but can afford what comes with it. God bless them for keeping the memory alive.

[Tallguy]

I recall stories about how cranky the superchargers were on the P-38’s that were used in the Pacific. I don’t recall the specific models. The superchargers were also very vulnerable to battle damage positioned as they were on the topside of the booms.

I wasn’t aware that the Merlin was put in the P-40, but it stands to reason since the Brits used a lot of Warhawks in North Africa. I wonder if the P40’s aero design was just a little to draggy to take maximum advantage of the Merlin’s power at altitude? Worth checking out.

[Tallguy]

Sounds like there’s going to be a traffic jam with all the UAV’s flitting around at various altitudes in the battlespace. I’ve read that there is already a struggle going on to decide which service is going to ‘control’ the UAV’s operationally.

I don’t know if we’ll be looking at a modern-version of the Key West Agreement or simply a recognition that 1 service, probably the USAF, will control the air tasking for everything operating above xxx altitude.

[Texican]

Ben:
I can remember being on the beach on Guadalcanal and watching the P-38's and Zero's in dog fights. They were mostly done at night, and the search lights would light up the Zeros but not the 38's or 51's. I think that those of us that use to watch those dog fights are getting much smaller. I am now 83 going on to 84 and am still in good health, but I know that a lot (many) my age are failing and passing away. I was in the Third Marine Divison, Ninth Marines at the time.

Good evening and the very best to you and yours.

Semper Fi
Tommie

[chaosagent]

My favorite P38/GoreBULL warming story ... enjoy

I just saw Glacier Girl at the Wings Over Houston Airshow a few weeks ago.

That is one beautiful aircraft!

[hattend]

Did someone say "Glacier Girl"?

Taken at the Reno Air Races this year

[BenLurkin]

Thank you for yor service.

[magslinger]

Don’t know, but it should.

[AnalogReigns]

My dad flew one of those beauties, photo-reconnaissance, in the Pacific in WWII.

[VRWCmember]

(Ling-Tempco-Vought - who grew up from the Vought Naval fighters), who had bought Convair (builder of out Fort Worth of the B-36 and eventual builder of the F-16),

Actually the Fort Worth Division of General Dynamics (previously Consolidated Vultee Aircraft -- or Convair) was bought by Lockheed before the merger of Lockheed and Martin Marietta.

[VRWCmember]

and then later bought Douglas - Continental out of St Louis (Douglas created the DC line of planes, but who was "continental - the airline?) -

That part was incorrect. McDonnell Douglas was bought by Boeing.