F-35 Joint Strike Fighter: Events & Contracts 2007 (updated)

F-35 Variants
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The F-35 Lightning II is a major multinational program which is intended to produce an "affordably stealthy" multi-role strike fighter that will have three variants: the F-35A conventional version for the US Air Force et. al.; the F-35B Short Take-Off, Vertical Landing for the US Marines, British Royal Navy, et. al.; and the F-35C conventional carrier-launched version for the US Navy. The aircraft is named after Lockheed's famous WW2 P-38 Lightning, and the Mach 2, stacked-engine English Electric (now BAE) Lightning jet. System development partners included The USA & Britain (Tier 1), Italy and the Netherlands (Tier 2), and Australia, Canada, Denmark, Norway and Turkey (Tier 3). Now the challenge is agreeing on production phase membership and arrangements, to be followed by initial purchase commitments around 2008-2009.

This updated article has expanded to feature more detail regarding the $250+ billion F-35 program, including other contracts as well as notable events. As a result of reader feedback, we'll make the new material more visible by putting it in green type. Recent news includes Turkey signing the production phase MoU; Norway agreeing to sign on, with contracts in tow; the first flight of the much-modified "CAT-Bird" 737 used as a live avionics testbed; and some information that highlights the effort and cost going into the engine testing part of the program....

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January 2007 India-Russia Cooperation Agreements

As DID noted in our coverage of the FC-1/JF-17 program yesterday, Russia's Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov, during which a number of joint defense projects were discussed and agreements were signed. Items in the works reportedly include a "5th generation fighter" project, even as the MiG-29OVT/MiG-35 is touted as the likely winner of the multi-billion MRCA fighter contract.

With respect to the agreements that were formally signed, DID has already covered them. Readers interested in more information can find DID's coverage of MRTA transport aircraft. We also covered licensed production of RD-33 series 3 engines for India's MiG-29 fleet; gthe recent agreement includes technical documents and licensing, as well as an accompanying general contract for initial supply of these engines and associated products.

Finally, the two sides also signed the Protocol of the Sixth India-Russia Inter Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation, which is a broad framework agreement covering standard procedures and cooperation scope. There are reports that this agreement widens the framework to encompass non-defense strategic areas such as information technology and space research.

Stuck in Sichuan: Pakistani JF-17 Program Grounded

FC-1/ JF-17
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The military world has no shortage of irony. The defense industry has its moments too, as Pakistan just discovered. An aircraft whose development was driven by military sanctions from the US and Europe is now derailed by military sanctions. This leaves the Pakistani Air Force dependent on an alternative from... America. Meanwhile, the Chinese are left with no export launch customer for a plane they may now have to reluctantly buy themselves, instead of the favoured and more capable J-10. Somewhere in Delhi, champagne is pouring - but first, a bit of background.

The JF-17/FC-1 is a sub-$20 million fighter designed as a co-operative venture between Pakistan and China to replace F-7P (MiG-21+) and Mirage 3/5 aircraft in Pakistan's fleet. China also has options to produce them, but has made no firm decisions and seems unenthusiastic. It's a comparable peer for India's still-under-development LCA Tejas, Taiwan's F-CK-1 Ching Kuo fighters, and South Korea's T/A-50 Golden Eagle supersonic trainer & light fighter. Sino Defense reminds us that the JF-17/FC-1 'Xiaolong' has a long history...

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GE Buys Smiths Aerospace for $4.8B

Under Jack Welch, General Electric Company became famous for its determination to be #1 or #2 in a field, or get out and focus on areas where it could achieve a commanding position. That aim still drives GE, which is why it's worth paying attention to GE's announced purchase of aircraft control & diagnostic systems manufacturer Smiths Aerospace plc for $4.8 billion in cash.

Smiths Aerospace plc was part of the Smiths Group, with more than 11,000 employees in Europe, North America, and Asia; and $2.4 billion in equivalent 2006 revenues. Their products include flight management systems, airborne platform computing systems, monitoring systems, power generation, conversion and distribution products, actuation products and systems for flight control, thrust reversers and landing gear applications, various engine components, aircraft structural ocmponents, land navigation, and a global customer services organization. The company has quietly but firmly built up key positions in these areas, with a significant presence on most commercial aircraft, many military aircraft, and even military land vehicles. See this diagram for a fine overview. More important, Smiths has a firm presence inside new aircraft such as the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and Airbus A380 super-jumbo, the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, P-8 MMA maritime aircraft, Britain's Future Lynx multi-role helicopter, et. al.

There are still a few Is to be dotted and Ts to be crossed, with completion scheduled for Q2 2007; in the meantime, both firms have plans...

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F-22 Raptor: Procurement & Events (updated)

F-22A Raptor, ready
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The fifth-generation F-22A Raptor fighter program has been the subject of fierce controversy, with advocates and detractors aplenty. This DID FOCUS Article covers both sides of that controversy, and it will also be updated over time to cover and backfill contracts and events related to the F-22A Raptor program. As a result of reader feedback, the newest material has been made more visible by putting it in green type.

Recent additions include a $255 million order for long-lead items under the new long-term contract.

• The F-22 Raptor: Background & Controversies (aka. Continue reading...)
• F-22 Raptor: Program and Events
• F-22 Raptor: Contracts
• Additional Readings & Sources

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Australia, USA Collaborating on Hypersonic Research (updated)

Scramjets explained
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Australia's Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) and the United States Air Force have signed an agreement to advance research into hypersonic (Mach 5 or higher) flight. The 8-year program has been established as a Project Arrangement under an existing research and development agreement between Australia and the USA, and the USD $54 million Hypersonic International Flight Research Experimentation (HIFiRE) project is one of the largest collaborative ventures to be undertaken between the two nations. It will have obvious implications for projects like DARPA's FALCON, both as a boost to its ambitions for lower-cost satellite launches and an obvious feed-in to spaceplane projects (see our FALCON HTV Focus Article). Hypersonics also has potential implications for missile projects like the $120 million RATTLRS contract, not to mention the dual-combustion ramjet approach of HyFly et. al.

The latest news involves Boeing confirming its participation, and detailing the 3 WaveRider technology test flights involved....

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$94.4M for Standard Aero to Keep T56 Engines Humming

T56 turboprop engine

Standard Aero, Inc. in San Antonio, TX received a $94.4 milllion modification to a previously awarded indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract (N00019-04-D-0016), exercising an option for T56 Series III engine module repairs. This includes facilities, labor, spare parts, consumable material, and test equipment to return the modules to ready-for-issue condition. This option involves repairs for up to 10 propulsion systems, 240 power sections, 205 reduction gear assemblies, 205 torque meters, 30 quick engine change kits, 5 compressor assemblies and 5 turbine unit change assemblies. Work will be performed at San Antonio, TX (80%); and Winnipeg, Canada, (20%) and is expected to be complete in December 2007. The Naval Air Systems Command in Patuxent River, MD issued the contract.

T56 Series III military turboprops power C-130A-H Hercules transports, P-3 Orion martitime patrol aircraft, and the E-2C+ Hawkeye AWACS/ C-2 Greyhound naval cargo airframe.

$61.2M for GE Engine Upgrades to Keep the USA's F-16 Fleet Flying

F110-GE-129 testing
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General Electric Co. in Cincinnati, OH received a $61.2 million firm-fixed-price and fixed-quantity contract modification. This action provides for a newly redesigned high pressure compressor and high pressure turbine assemblies in GE's F110 series engines, and newly redesigned engine upgrade components to support the service life extension plan and aging engine upgrade initiatives. This contract is part of a program designed to get 20 more years of operational life from the USA's F-16 fleet. While the DefenseLINK release describes the engines as F100s, Pratt & Whitney's F100 has become a less of a presence in the USA's F-16 fleet, whose newer aircraft are generally equipped with the more powerful GE F110.

Work will be complete by December 2008. The Headquarters Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center at Tinker Air Force Base, OK issued the contract (FA8104-05-C-0053/P00009).

GE Gets $523.9M to Service F414 Engines in 4 Year Contract

F414-GE-400 engine
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General Electric Transportation Aircraft Engines in Lynn, MA received a $532.9 million performance-based logistics contract for repair, replacement, consumables support, and program support. The contracts covers F414 jet engine components used in the US Navy's F/A-18E/F Super Hornet aircraft and the derivative EA-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft that is currently in testing. The F414 delivers 35% more thrust than the GE F404s installed in F/A-18 A-D Hornets, and also features upgrades designed to improve reliability and make them easier to maintain.

Work will be performed in Lynn, MA (90%), and Jacksonville, FL (10%), and is expected to be completed by December 2010. This contract was not awarded competitively by the Naval Inventory Control Point (N00383-07-D-001M).

The 2006 Saudi Shopping Spree: Pimp My (F-15S) Ride

Saudi F-15 refueling
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According to a November 14, 2006 US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) notice, Saudi Arabia may be about to become the first F-15 operator to switch its Pratt & Whitney F100 jet engines for General Electric's F110. The total contract could be worth up to $1.5 billion.

The GE F110 was developed as an engine alternative to Pratt & Whitney's original F100, and has since become very popular in F-16s due to its higher thrust. Most of the USAF's current F-16 fleet currently flies with GE F110 engines, for instance. Despite extensive US F-15E trials in 1999, however, almost all F-15s worldwide use the P&W F100 engine. South Korea's new F-15Ks and Singapore's new F-15SG Strike Eagles will fly with the F110 as pre-installed equipment, becoming the first F-15 fleets to do so - but Saudi Arabia's F-15S variant may become the first fleet to perform a re-engining switch.

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