Lockheed Martin girds for battle (for F-35)

Fortune ^ | Nov. 29, 2011 | Marc Gunther

[sukhoi-30mki]

Lockheed Martin girds for battle

After the debt supercommittee's failure, defense contractors are preparing for turbulent times. Can Lockheed save the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter?

Perilous times await Lockheed Martin, the world's largest military contractor. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are winding down. Because the congressional supercommittee failed to agree on a plan to curb the federal deficit, the Pentagon faces spending reductions that could add up to about $1 trillion over the next decade. One likely target: Lockheed's controversial F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the most expensive weapons program in history.

Robert J. "Bob" Stevens, Lockheed's CEO, can't be happy about any of this, but the 59-year-old ex-Marine is not the complaining type. A tall, trim, bespectacled man of sober mien who chooses his words carefully, Stevens will say only that important decisions about national security should not be "a function of automatic budget triggers." Further spending reductions "would have a significant impact" on military readiness, the company says. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has sounded an alarm of his own, warning "the impacts of these cuts would be devastating." If they are allowed to stand, he says, the military will be "forced to terminate most large procurement programs," including the F-35.

Thus is the stage set for yet another Washington budget battle. A great deal is at stake of Lockheed. The company will fight to protect its weaponry, particularly the F-35, which accounts for 13% of its revenue this year and is expected to grow in importance to the firm. "It's going to be a very challenging time for Lockheed," says William Hartung, an industry analyst and the author of Prophets of War: Lockheed Martin and the Making of the Military-Industrial

[sukhoi-30mki]

Not necessarily-it would do pretty well at the strike role.

[Sequoyah101]

I know I keep asking or saying but wouldn’t a good F-15SE with all the upgrades do the same and carry more further?

[sukhoi-30mki]

The F-15SE can do a lot of that but it would still have a higher radar cross section and I’d assume costs would be higher (older, bigger, twin-engines); the F-35 was meant to be a workhorse unlike the F-15E.

[Sequoyah101]

workhorse unlike the F-15E?

You gotta be kidding me. It can strap on 7 2000 pounders and deliver them?

[sukhoi-30mki]

So what exactly is a workhorse? The aircraft you will operate in the largest numbers and with highest mission rates and affordable operating costs. The F-16 plays that role for the USAF and most others, not the F-15E, despite being the more capable aircraft. The F-35 was meant for that role, not to carry as much as the F-15E.

[Yo-Yo]

Well, if not the F-35 then what? ... The smart thing to do would be to re-open the F-22 lines, but I don’t think they’ll opt for that either.

The Joint Strike Fighter is a multi-service aircraft, and the F-22 cannot fill that role.

If the JSF is outright cancelled, then the alternative is:

1) Continue to build F-16s, modernized with AESA radar and perhaps incorporating some of the F-35's advanced Infrared Search and Track technology,

2) Contine to build F/A-18s for the Navy with similar AESA and IRST, and

3) Politely inform the Marines that once their Harriers, recently augmented with the purchase of the recently retired UK Royal Navy and Royal Air Force Harriers, have reached the end of their life, they are out of the S/VTOL business. The Marines would then return to the pre-Harrier days of operating fixed wing aircraft from Navy carriers and from land bases. The Marines can acquire more AH-Z SuperCobras for close air support operations from Navy Amphibious Assault Ships.

Or, heaven forbid, actually navalize the Apache...

[spetznaz]

Or, heaven forbid, actually navalize the Apache...

I thought the Brits used a navalized Apache?

[tanknetter]

I thought the Brits used a navalized Apache?

Yes and no. The Brits use a version of the AH-64D that has been optimized for operations in a naval environment - specifically conducting traditional AH-64/Attack Helo missions from naval platforms (such as HMS Ocean and HMS Illustrious). This means things like folding rotors, additional tie-downs, enhanced anti-corrosion measures to deal with a high-salt environment, etc.

A true "navalized" Apache would be highly modified to not only carry out traditional AH-64/attack helo missions, but also conduct a wider range of general maritime missions. There have been many proposals for this sort of thing over the years, such as the concepts below:

[DainBramage]

The F-35 and ever present escort were flying around down town Fort Worth Today. And very low and slow.

We were outside training and all watched and commented that it looked like they were on a show and tell mission for some big wigs somewhere.

A beautiful site.

[taildragger]

they are out of the S/VTOL business. The Marines would then return to the pre-Harrier days of operating fixed wing aircraft from Navy carriers and from land bases. The Marines can acquire more AH-Z SuperCobras for close air support operations from Navy Amphibious Assault Ships.

Boy, their are some interesting technologies on the horizon that might fit the bill...

The Sikorsky X2, The Piasecki ducted fan retrofit, and maybe even the Carter-Copter Auto Gyro technologies these would be in the fling wing arena. A large "X2" Troop Carrier might make the V22 obsolete IMHO.

In terms of fix wing, yes but STOL for sure. Something with the payload and speed range of the Warthog that as a Stol Wing or is a Delta with lots of wing area might do the trick. A revisit of this is long overdue....

[spetznaz]

Ah! Thanks for the clarification. Much appreciated.

[SunkenCiv]

Note: this topic is from November 30.

Thanks sukhoi-30mki.

...the Pentagon faces spending reductions that could add up to about $1 trillion over the next decade. One likely target: Lockheed's controversial F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the most expensive weapons program in history.