Joint Strike Fighter Contractor Awarded From the United States Department of Defense
Brooke Rowe
Department of Defense
(EXCERPT) WASHINGTON (NNS) -- Undersecretary of Defense for
Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Edward C. "Pete" Aldridge Jr.
announced this afternoon the decision to proceed with the Joint Strike
Fighter program. This approval will move the program to the next
phase, the System Development and Demonstration phase. Secretary of
the Air Force James G. Roche announced the selection of Lockheed
Martin teamed with Northrop Grumman and BAE to develop and then
produce the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft. The contract, for
$18,981,928,201, will produce aircraft to be used by the U.S. Air
Force, Navy and Marines, as well as the United Kingdom's Royal Air
Force and Navy. Also, Pratt and Whitney Military Engines, East
Hartford, Conn., has been awarded a contract for more than $4 billion
to develop the F135 propulsion system. This contract will cover ground
and flight testing and production qualification of the Pratt & Whitney
propulsion system. The Joint Strike Fighter acquisition strategy also
calls for the development of two propulsion systems. The Pratt &
Whitney system will compete, in production, with one developed by the
team of General Electric and Rolls Royce. General Electric and Rolls
Royce are expected to receive a contract for the next phase of
development of that system in the next few weeks. The Pratt & Whitney
and General Electric/ Rolls Royce engines will be physically and
functionally interchangeable in both the aircraft and support systems.
All JSF aircraft variants will be able to use either engine. The
competition starts in fiscal 2011 and continues through the life of
the program to reduce risks. The Joint Strike Fighter is a
multi-Service/international cooperation warplane. The cornerstone of
the program is affordability based on a next-generation, multi-role
strike fighter aircraft that will have a 70 to 90 percent commonality
factor for all the variants, significantly reducing manufacturing,
support and training costs. First delivery of operational aircraft is
anticipated in fiscal 2008. During this Systems Development and
Demonstration phase, the program will focus on developing a family of
strike aircraft that significantly reduces life-cycle cost, while
meeting the operational requirements for the Services. The
requirements represent a balanced approach to affordability,
lethality, survivability and supportability. The program will use a
phased block approach that addresses aircraft and weapons integration
and provides a validated and verified air system for the Service
Initial Operational Capability requirements. Also during this phase of
the contract Lockheed Martin, teamed with Northrop Grumman and BAE,
will implement innovative management and business practices focusing
on achieving affordable unit flyaway costs and reduced life- cycle
cost for future production of the Joint Strike Fighter. The source
selection culminates a highly successful joint process with the Air
Force, Navy, Marine Corps and United Kingdom Ministry of Defence. A
number of agreements between the U.S. and foreign governments are in
place for this phase of the program. The United Kingdom became a full
collaborative partner in the program in 1995. Denmark, Norway, The
Netherlands, Canada and Italy subsequently joined the program as
cooperative partners. Singapore, Turkey and Israel are foreign
military sales participants for this phase. The United Kingdom has
signed an agreement to participate in the System Development and
Demonstration (SDD) phase of the program. Agreements with additional
countries for SDD participation are in progress. For the U.S. Navy,
the JSF will be used in a "first day" of war, as a survivable strike
fighter aircraft to complement the F/A-18E/F. The U.S. Air Force will
employ it as a multi-role aircraft, primary-air-to-ground, which will
replace the F-16 and A-10 and to complement the F-22. The Marine Corps
will use the Short Takeoff and Vertical Landing (STOVL) variant of the
aircraft to replace the AV-8B and F/A-18A/C/D. The United Kingdom's
Royal Navy and Royal Air Force multi-role aircraft will replace the
Sea Harrier and GR7. Additional information on the Joint Strike
Fighter Program can be found on the Web at
http://www.jast.mil. For more information about the Department of
Defense today, go to
http://www.defenselink.mil/today.
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Brooke Rowe
Associate Librarian
The American War Library
http://www.americanwarlibrary.com