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Pentagon budget cuts almost certain to affect F-35 By Bob Cox rcox@star-telegram.com The stealth design of the F-35 joint strike fighter is supposed to make it nearly invisible to enemy radar, but the super high-tech combat aircraft may not be able to avoid the bull's-eye of Pentagon budget-cutters. Congress' failure last month to agree on $1.2 billion in additional deficit reduction measures means the Defense Department is facing enormous funding cuts mandated by law. Without new congressional action to restore funding, experts say, the Pentagon will be forced to make big cuts in spending on new weapons. And the F-35...

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...

Indonesia to buy 24 refurbished US F-16 fighters (Reuters) - The United States plans to supply 24 refurbished F-16C/D fighter aircraft to Indonesia, the presidents of the two countries announced in Bali on Friday on the fringes of an Asia-Pacific summit. It was the second militarily significant announcement of President Barack Obama's ongoing nine-day Asia-Pacific trip. The upgraded Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) F-16s will give Indonesia a "much-needed" capability to protect its sovereign airspace, the White House said in a "fact sheet" that emphasized the relatively low price tag, put at $750 million by the Pentagon. Under a separate tightening...

#DXB11: Dubai Air Show's biggest non-story is ... the F-35 The Lockheed Martin F-35 is the story that won't happen at the Dubai Air Show, which opens Sunday, and we're not entirely sure why. There is of course no shortage of big headlines at what is now the world's third-largest aerospace event and rising quickly. It's possible the United Arab Emirates will finally sign a check to buy some number of Dassault Rafales, although the total could be fewer than the stated requirement of 60. We may also hear more about the UAE's postponed deals for large airborne early warning...

LCS "Ugly Duckling" Turning Into A Swan 17:17 GMT, October 26, 2011 Until recently, the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) has struggled to overcome the impression that it was the U.S. Navy's "ugly duckling." There were questions regarding the mission for the LCS -- operations in littoral waters, the possibility of building warships in commercial shipyards according to commercial standards, and the plausibility of equipping the LCS with plug-and-play mission modules. There were complaints about the designs of both variants. There was the crisis of rising prices as the cost for each ship rose when the builders were required to meet...

WASHINGTON/ATLANTA, Oct 26 (Reuters) - After months of grumbling behind the scenes, U.S. arms makers are now publicly criticizing Pentagon plans to change the way it buys weapons and make industry shoulder more of the risks of development. snip Chief Executive Robert Stevens told reporters after the earnings release on Wednesday that Lockheed would be reluctant to accept "unbounded liabilities for unpredictable or unknown events."

Lockheed Martin commands lead in Korea’s FX-race An F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter carries out a test flight from a U.S. air base in this undated photo. / Courtesy of Lockheed Martin By Lee Tae-hoon One of the most-talked-about news this year was that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il could not come out of his underground bunker for nine days, fearful of the F-22 Raptors in the skies above during a joint military drill between South Korea and the United States late last year. The surprising news clearly demonstrated the power of deterrence that stealth fighter jets can offer...

US to field deadlier missile in war againt al Qaeda * US Army hopes to deploy new Hellfire version soon * "One missile for many missions," manufacturer says * Combines killing capabilities of all previous models By Jim Wolf WASHINGTON, Oct 14 (Reuters) - A precision-strike missile that has been a star of the U.S.-led war on al Qaeda and its allies is about to get deadlier. The cylindrical, 108-pound (49-kg) missile, known as Hellfire II, has been the weapon of choice on remotely piloted aircraft such as the General Atomics MQ-1A Predator and the MQ-9 Reaper. These drones have...

Lockheed offers Japan F-35 final assembly Lockheed Martin has dangled the possibility of final assembly of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter in front of Japan as part of its plan to win the country's F-X fighter competition. The US airframer confirmed that final assembly and check out, component manufacture, and F-35 maintenance, repair and overhaul have been included in its response to Tokyo's request for proposals. "These key fifth-generation production technologies are state-of-the art for the aerospace industry, and will provide Japan with a cornerstone for building long-term industrial leadership," said Lockheed. Industrial participation is an important component of the...

NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force (IAF) is set to acquire six more C-130J Super Hercules special operations aircraft in addition to the six already ordered. The IAF chief, Air Chief Marshal Norman Anil Kumar Browne, told India Strategic defence magazine (www.indiastrategic.in) that the aircraft had performed well in the recent earthquake relief operations in north-eastern India and that the IAF would utilize the multi-role capability of the aircraft as required. The C-130J can land and take off from unpaved, grassy fields the size of a football ground and can be a big support in both peace and war to...

Foreign aircraft builders vie for lucrative Korean project SEPTEMBER 28, 2011 03:28 “The Rafale took the lead (built by French aircraft manufacturer Dassault Aviation) by a narrow margin in the first stage of the assessment, but considering interoperability and the alliance between Korea and the U.S., we have finally chosen the F-15K (built by the American company Boeing).” When the Korean Defense Ministry announced in 2002 the selection of the F-15K for the first stage of its fighter jet development project called Fighter eXperimental, or FX, opinions were mixed. Some said it was a fully expected result under the Korea-U.S....

Typhoon, F/A-18, F-35 could duel in Japan fighter bid By Philip Ewing Friday, September 23rd, 2011 They don’t want to say it out loud, but here’s what Boeing and Lockheed are thinking right now: “Not again!” According to a report this week in the Financial Times, Japan says it would be open to choosing the Eurofighter Typhoon as its new front-line fighter jet, setting up a possible three-way battle between it, Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet and Lockheed’s F-35 Lightning II. This would be the second time in recent history that American defense giants have battled Europe for a major Asian...

DSEi 2011: Lockheed Martin promoting podded AEW solution September 16, 2011 Lockheed Martin has revealed a possible solution to an expected Royal Navy requirement for helicopter-based airborne early warning system for its future aircraft carriers. Currently the Fleet Air Arm operates a fleet of Sea King ASaC7 helicopters equipped with the Thales Searchwater radar system which provides airborne early warning and also an element of GMTI capability which has proved extremely useful for the coalition forces in Afghanistan. The aircraft have also recently been heavily tasked on Operation Ellamy in support of NATO operations in Libya. Because the Sea King...

Lockheed to assemble Korean T-50 jets 2011-09-15 19:49 U.S. company hints at transferring some of stealth technologies to S. Korea FORT WORTH, Texas ― Lockheed Martin will establish facilities in the U.S. for the final assembly of Korea’s T-50 supersonic aircraft to meet the possible U.S. demand for trainer jets, a senior official at the defense giant said last week. It has already reached an agreement on this with Korea Aerospace Industries, the country’s sole aircraft maker which developed the T-50 with technological assistance from Lockheed Martin. The move triggered concerns that the U.S. assembly line would decrease the profits...

In past few decades, the U.S. Air Force has spent untold billions researching and developing a family of stealth fighter jets that are supposed to be generations ahead of any dogfighters in the sky. But after building more than 170 F-22 Raptors and a handful of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, not a single one is available for service. The Air Force currently has zero flyable stealth fighters. None.

Americans favored in fight to replace Korea’s F-4s By Greg Waldron South Korea faces a threat to its existence - in the shape of its neighbour, North Korea. Though its air force is obsolete, Pyongyang would enter a conflict with the ability to inflict immense damage in a short time. It has made little secret of its efforts to develop nuclear weapons and the missiles to carry them, and it has over 1,000 artillery pieces within firing range of South Korea's capital, Seoul - with many in hardened bunkers. There is also China to consider, which has long served as...

Lockheed Martin has been awarded two regional task orders totalling $72 million to help TSA integrate and deploy new passenger screening and security equipment at airports across the east and central United States. The task orders were awarded under the TSA's Security Equipment Systems Integration ...and include one base-year plus one option-year. ... Under these orders, Lockheed Martin will assist TSA in deploying passenger screening technologies including Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) equipment and software upgrades. The work will involve a complex integration of electrical systems, wireless technologies and existing airport infrastructure. Lockheed Martin will perform installations at approximately 300 airports...

Lockheed should get decision on selling F-16s to Taiwan Posted Wednesday, Jul. 27, 2011 By Bob Cox rcox@star-telegram.com Thanks to some political horse-trading by Texas Sen. John Cornyn, Lockheed Martin should finally get a decision from the Obama administration later this year about selling F-16 fighter jets to Taiwan. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week struck a deal with the Republican senator by agreeing to review Taiwan's requests to buy 66 new F-16s from Lockheed Martin as well as kits to upgrade its older-model fighter jets. Cornyn in turn agreed to release the hold he had placed blocking a...

Four candidates short-listed in Korea's stealth jet project 2011-07-20 21:16 Korea will acquire a new generation of stealth fighter jets from overseas to better counter North Korean provocations, the local defense procurement agency said Wednesday. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said it has narrowed down the candidates to four fighters: the F-15SE Silent Eagle by Boeing, F-35 Lightning II by Lockheed Martin, Eurofighter Typhoon by the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company (EADS) and the T-50 PAK-FA by Russian firm Sukhoi. According to DAPA, the project to acquire 60 fifth-generation stealth fighters is worth 8.29 trillion won ($7.86 billion)....

Boeing's fighting comeback By Stephen Trimble Stephen Trimble/Pairs and St Louis Nearly 10 years ago it strongly appeared that Boeing might be a spent force in the manned fighter aircraft business. Lockheed Martin's victory in the competition for the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) contract - announced on 26 October 2001 - sounded the warning. The only new tactical fighter planned during the next 25 years or so would roll off Lockheed's assembly line in Fort Worth - not Boeing's fighter factory in St Louis. The F-35 was first scheduled to enter service in 2008. By then, orders for the F/A-18E/F...