Lockheed Martin F-35 Thread

Principle Agreement Reached On Two Lower Cost F-35 Contracts

Washington D.C., July 30, 2013 – The U.S. Department of Defense and Lockheed Martin reached an agreement in principle for the next two F-35 Lightning II aircraft production contracts (Low-Rate Initial Production (LRIP) lots 6 and 7), which is expected to include 71 stealth fighter aircraft and continue a reduction in F-35 aircraft pricing. The contracting effort spanned six months from proposal to settlement.

A decrease in F-35 LRIP 6-7 unit costs, coupled with negotiating lower prices on a number of other smaller contracts, will allow the Department to purchase all the aircraft originally planned, including those that were in jeopardy of being cut due to sequestration budget impacts.

Cost details will be released once both contracts are finalized; however, in general, the unit prices for all three variants of the U.S. air vehicles in LRIP-6 are roughly four percent lower than the previous contract. LRIP-7 air vehicle unit prices will show an additional four percent reduction. The LRIP-7 price represents about an eight percent reduction from the LRIP-5 contract signed in December 2012.

"These two contracts represent a fair deal that is beneficial to the government and Lockheed Martin," said Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan, F-35 Program Executive Officer. "Improving affordability is critical to the success of this program, and by working together we were able to negotiate a lower cost F-35. There is still work to be done, but these agreements are proof the cost arrow is moving in the right direction. We will continue to work with industry to identify areas for savings in future production contracts."

The new contracts will also include the first F-35s for Australia, Italy, Norway, and the fourth F-35 for the United Kingdom. In addition to procuring the air vehicles, these contracts also fund manufacturing-support equipment and ancillary mission equipment.

Deliveries of 36 U.S. and partner nation aircraft in LRIP-6 will begin by mid-2014 and deliveries of 35 U.S. and partner nation aircraft in LRIP-7 will begin by mid-2015.

“At the start of these negotiations, the F-35 Joint Program Office and our F-35 team jointly committed to conduct LRIP-6 and -7 negotiations in an efficient manner that leveraged all we achieved from the LRIP-5 contract,” said Lorraine Martin, Lockheed Martin F-35 Vice President and General Manager. “Today’s agreement reflects our collective JPO/LM delivery on that commitment. We know how critical aircraft production is to meeting our services’ Initial Operational Capability dates, beginning with the Marine Corps in 2015, and we’re committed to making that happen.”

The LRIP-6 and -7 aircraft will join the 95 F-35s contracted under LRIPs 1-5. To date, 67 F-35s (including test aircraft) have been delivered from Lockheed Martin's production facility in Fort Worth, Texas. The U.S. and eight partner nations plan to acquire more than 3,100 F-35 fighters. Israel and Japan have also announced plans to purchase the jet under Foreign Military Sales agreements.

The agreement in principle reached between the Government and Lockheed Martin are for air vehicles and do not include the propulsion systems. The LRIP-6 engine contract is currently being negotiated between the Government and Pratt & Whitney.

http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/news/press-releases/2013/july/130730ae_principle-agreement-on-lower-cost-f-35-contracts.html
 
Agreeing the First Contract for Norwegian F-35
(Source: Norway Ministry of Defence; issued July 30, 2013)
(Issued in Norwegian only; unofficial translation by defense-aerospace.com)

The multi-national program office for the F-35 in the United States, Joint Project Office (JPO), announced today that it has reached an agreement in principle with manufacturer Lockheed Martin for the production of 71 new aircraft as part of the 6th and 7 production batches of the F-35. The first two Norwegian aircraft are due to be produced as part of Lot 7, and therefore the contract is also almost ready for the first Norwegian planes.

“This means we will soon have a contract for a Norwegian aircraft, allowing us for the first time to have a concrete number for what the first Norwegian F-35 aircraft will cost. It will give us a good indication of whether the cost projections are based on the actual holding, which all indications are that they will do,” says program director for Fighter aircraft program Anders Melheim.

“The fact that we have delivered these two planes early allows us to begin the training of Norwegian pilots in 2016, and which means we may have trained pilots ready to receive the first aircraft on Norwegian soil the following year, in 2017. This is important, as it helps to ensure that the transition between the F-16 and F-35 is the best possible,” says Melheim.

The agreement announced today includes a total of 71 new aircraft, and these are in addition to the 95 aircraft already ordered under previous contracts. The two new contracts include deliveries to the U.S., UK, Australia, Italy and Norway.

Deliveries of the aircraft from the 6th production contract will begin in mid-2014, while shipments from the 7th contract, which will include the Norwegian aircraft, will begin in mid-2015.

The two Norwegian aircraft are expected to be delivered in the last quarter of 2015.

The JPO expects that the final contract will be ready in late August. Only then will it become clear what the unit price for each aircraft will be, but it's already promising that it will be further reduced compared to the previous agreement signed earlier this year.

The trend of increasingly lower costs is continuing, in line with expectations.

The two Norwegian planes in the 7th production contract are part of the four aircraft that Parliament authorized in 2011 for training purposes, and commissioned in the previous summer. The procurement of these four aircraft has a cost of 5.02 billion kroner.

“It is very gratifying that we will soon be able to sign the first binding contract for F-35. This is the largest single investment in defense ever made, and it gives us important new capabilities for the future. It is important to remember that this only applies to the first two planes - the next two aircraft will be ordered under the next contract as soon as it is ready, and this in turn will be followed by the contract for the first six aircraft in the main contract. In this way, with new contracts, we will constantly monitor the cost of the program, which of course is very important for us,” says Melheim.


Facts about the Norwegian procurement of the F-35
- Norway will acquire up to 52 combat aircraft of the F-35 to ensure that the Armed Forces in the future will be able to fulfill their tasks in the best possible way.
- The contract is estimated to cost 62.6 billion real 2013 values. The overall Norwegian cost estimates have been stable since 2008.
- The first four F-35s will be used for the training of Norwegian troops was decided acquired in 2011. The first two of these will be delivered in the United States in 2015, and the last two in 2016.
- Parliament in June 2013 gave the government the authority to order the first six aircraft in the main procurement of F-35 to be delivered in 2017.

-ends-
 
Defense-aerospace.com:
Senate panel reduces funding for F-35 program

The Senate Appropriations Committee has reduced long-lead funding for the F-35 program, judging that it is premature to increase the production rate before the program’s many problems are resolved.

The committee also told the Pentagon to review whether the Air Force’s stated goal of buying 1,763 F-35A fighters remains feasible. “Given these times of fiscal austerity,” the Pentagon “should review the Air Force tactical fighter force mix,” the defense appropriations subcommittee stated in its report.

These two developments are clear signs that legislators are becoming very concerned about the F-35 program’s fiscal and technical non-performance, and with the Pentagon’s management.

They are also significant because any reduction in the production run would result in higher unit costs, accelerating the “death spiral” when a program eventually becomes unaffordable.

The appropriations committee’s markup of the FY14 Pentagon budget request, released Aug. 1, “fully funds the 2014 procurement quantities for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, but limits funding for a 2015 production ramp up to maintain focus on developmental testing and software deliveries.”

It also “limits funding to F-35 Joint Strike Fighter development to support necessary planning activities for follow-on development.”

In dollar terms, the committee “cut $80 million and six aircraft from the Pentagon’s initial $562 million request” to pay for long-lead items for the 42 aircraft that the Pentagon would like to buy in fiscal year 2015, Bloomberg reported Aug. 1. “The Pentagon is planning an increase from the 29 planes that were requested, and approved by the committee, for fiscal 2014,” it added.

In its report, the defense appropriations subcommittee explains the cuts by noting that the F-35 program “continues to experience considerable challenges with software development, system reliability and maintenance system development.”

Given these “significant challenges,” a “large increase in the production of aircraft” to 42 from 29 “is not yet warranted” the subcommittee said.
 
Ready For Sea Trials; F-35B Completes 500th Vertical Landing

FORT WORTH, Texas, Aug.6, 2013 – The Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] F-35B short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft completed its 500th vertical landing August 3. BF-1, the aircraft which completed this achievement, also accomplished the variant’s first vertical landing in March 2010 at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md.

Next week, Sea Trials, known as Developmental Test 2 (DT-2) are scheduled to begin for the F-35B variant onboard the USS WASP. DT-2 is the second of three planned tests aimed at defining and expanding the F-35B’s shipboard operating envelope for the U.S. Marine Corps. The first shipboard testing phase was successfully completed in October 2011. The successful completion of the upcoming Sea Trials is key to declaring F-35 Initial Operating Capability (IOC) for the U.S. Marine Corps in 2015.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs about 116,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation's net sales for 2012 were $47.2 billion.

http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/news/press-releases/2013/august/130806ae_f-35b-completes-500th-vertical-landing.html
 

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US Marine Corps test pilot Capt. Michael Kingen releases a 500-pound GBU-12 bomb from F-35B test aircraft BF-01 during a weapons separation test over the inshore test area at the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division test facility NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, on 1 August 2013. This was the 314th flight of BF-01.
 

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US Navy squadron finally takes to the air in an F-35

A naval aviator from Strike Fighter Squadron 101 (VFA-101), the U.S. Navy’s first squadron to operate the F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), took to the air Aug. 14 in the cockpit of one of the aircraft, marking a transition from planning and training to actual flight operations.

Lt. Cmdr. Chris Tabert — call sign Car Bomb — lifted off from Eglin Air Force Base, Florida in Aircraft 102 to fly the first squadron sortie in their new mount.

The flight, according to the Navy, followed a decision granting the FRS interim “safe for flight” status.

“VFA-101 will now begin to schedule and perform sorties under their own charter from their facilities at Eglin AFB,” Capt. Mark Black, commander, Strike Fighter Wing Pacific, said in a Navy press release. “This will permit the re-established Grim Reapers to begin training for the original flight instructor cadre that will teach future F-35C pilots in the intricacies of mastering the Navy’s first 5th generation fighter.

“Designating VFA-101 as Interim Safe for Flight signifies that the Navy F-35C has begun its service in Naval Aviation for real,” Black added.

VFA-101 now has begun to serve as the F-35C Fleet Replacement Squadron, training both pilots and maintenance personnel to fly and repair the carrier-based version of the JSF.

http://blogs.defensenews.com/intercepts/2013/08/us-navy-squadron-finally-takes-to-the-air-in-an-f-35/
 
f_35_107_zps23ef3d7b.jpg
 
F-35B makes first landing at sea... at night.

Marine test pilot makes first F-35B night landing at sea > Headquarters Marine Corps > News Article Display

88b92400-4656-4bba-8897-4af3c7196b0d_zps69ab20ac.jpg


Lt. Col. C.R. “Jimi” Clift makes the first F-35B Lightning II night landing on USS Wasp during the second at-sea F-35 developmental test event, Aug. 14. The F-35 Integrated Test Force is embarked on the Wasp for three weeks to expand the F-35B operational envelope in preparation for Marine Corps initial operational capability test in 2015. (Photo by MCSN Michael T. Forbes II, U.S. Navy) (Photo by MCSN Michael T. Forbes II)


During the 18-day long ship trials, two F-35Bs will conduct a series of tests to determine the aircraft’s suitability for sea-based operations. Pilots will expand the F-35Bs allowable wind envelope for launch and recovery, conduct first-ever night operations at sea, conduct initial mission systems evaluations at sea, evaluate the dynamic interface associated with aircraft operations on a moving flight deck, and further evaluate shipboard sustainment of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

At the conclusion of DT-II, the Navy and Marine Corps team should have sufficient data to support certification for future F-35B Lighting II shipboard operations in anticipation of 2015 deployment.
More at the jump.
 
http://www.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/223/Article/466854/eglin-f-35-fleet-exceeds-2k-sorties-training-presses-on.aspx

2,000th sortie
 
Triton said:
"F-35B performs first vertical take-off"
by Dave Majumdar on May 13, 2013 2:23 AM

Source:
http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/the-dewline/2013/05/f-35b-performs-first-vertical.html

Sources say that test pilots at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, performed the first Lockheed Martin F-35B Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) vertical take-off on 10 May.

In facts, ad the F-35B, like all Lightning II, is only single-seater, only one test pilot accomplished the first vertical take-off. I failed to find any source saying his his name. Some indicate "Navy test pilots" and other "Lockheed-Martin test pilot". Any information about?
Nico
 
Video with night landing and night takeoff.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jJglPPDm-w


Another View

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW72dBp5DBM
 
Eglin's F-35 Fleet Exceeds 2K Sorties
(Source: US Air force; issued Aug. 19, 2013)

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --- Airmen and Marines assigned to the F-35 Integrated Training Center at the 33rd Fighter Wing here have consistently flown successful training sorties and generated their 2,000th sortie Aug. 13 with an instructor pilot of the Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron-501 at the controls.

Maj. Adam Levine, who flew in a two-ship formation, said he was surprised with the news upon landing, but said that is typical since the flightline members are focusing on safe and effective flying rather than keeping pace with data tracked by those in statistical analysis.

"Every sortie, every takeoff, every hour is a win for the F-35 enterprise," he said. From his cockpit, Levine also witnessed the first taxi of the U.S. Navy's F-35C carrier variant preparing for its maiden flight from here.

With the Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy pressing forward to meet goals of initial operating capability in the next few years for their respective services, getting ample time in the air is crucial to meeting their timelines.

"Flying the 2,000th sortie highlights the accomplishments of the entire F-35 airpower team here and moves us one step closer to the aircraft's initial war fighting capability," said Col. Todd Canterbury, the commander of the 33rd FW.

The Eglin F-35A, B, and C variant joint training has been accomplished while operational and developmental test missions at flight test sites on the east and west coasts have been conducted simultaneously -- a process known as concurrency.

In these last couple weeks, Eglin AFB officials sent a handful of their pilots to Luke Air Force Base Ariz., to become the initial cadre of F-35A leaders at the 61st Fighter Squadron, 56th Fighter Wing, said Col. Stephen Jost, the commander of the 33rd Operations Group here. Luke AFB's first joint strike fighters are scheduled to arrive in spring 2014 with plans to grow to 144 aircraft in the out years.

For now, the Eglin-based flyers are expanding their training curriculum as they double up to full aircraft strength in the spring with all 24 Air Force F-35As expected to be on base. Jost will lead the group's transition to the Block 2A aircraft, which carry upgraded computer software, in the first quarter of calendar year 2014 in order to accommodate more aircraft capabilities.

"We will increase the current syllabus from six student sorties to eight and even nine depending on when we will be cleared by the test community to fly at night," Jost said.

Aside from flight operations, this also entails transitioning the ground school instruction such as flying more advanced scenarios in the full mission simulator.

"The primary capability of Block 2A is use of the plane's multifunction advanced data link," he said.

Currently, voice transmission is the primary means of communication.

In the near future, VMFAT-501 is preparing to conduct its first local short take-off and vertical landing of the F-35B, an accomplishment realized at MCAS Yuma in March that the VMFAT-501 helped make possible. Meanwhile, the Navy's Strike Fighter Squadron 101 has conducted its first maintenance check flight Aug. 14.

In the upcoming years, when operating at full capacity, the Eglin fleet will grow to 59 aircraft with about 100 pilots and 2,100 maintainers graduating yearly.

The F-35 joint strike fighter program is a joint, multi-national program. In addition to U.S. armed forces, the F-35 increases operational flexibility and interoperability with the eight other international partners participating in the development of the aircraft. They are the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, Turkey, Canada, Australia, Denmark, and Norway.

With so much history in the making, the F-35A, B and C fighter units at Eglin AFB are making strides for airpower for years to come, officials said.

"The versatile and high-tech aircraft will carry the U.S. Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy into the next 50 years of air dominance, and the men and women here can reflect back knowing they were among the pioneers in its initial phases," Canterbury said.

-ends-
 
F-35 Support Costs Fall 22%, Pentagon Manager Estimates

A fleet of Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT)’s F-35 fighters will cost $857 billion over 55 years to operate and support, 22 percent less than previously estimated, according to the head of the Pentagon office developing the plane.

The new estimate reflects the aircraft’s performance in 5,000 test flights over 7,000 hours, Air Force Lieutenant General Christopher Bogdan, the Defense Department’s program manager for the F-35, told the Senate Armed Services Committee in written answers last month that haven’t been made public until now.

“The previous cost estimate did not factor in this new knowledge,” Bogdan said.

Operating costs include expenses from spare parts to repairs and fuel. Officially, the Pentagon’s estimate remains $1.1 trillion, a two-year-old projection developed by the Pentagon’s independent cost-assessment office.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-21/f-35-support-costs-fall-22-pentagon-manager-estimates.html
 
More Night & Twilight Ops

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8K50UVd-cdo
 
ATK celebrates 150th wing skin for F-35 Lightning II in Clearfield

CLEARFIELD — The future viability of Hill Air Force Base could hinge on the work being done by an aerospace manufacturer just a few miles down the road.

On Wednesday, ATK celebrated the completion of its 150th wing skin for the F-35 Lightning II, the fifth-generation, international, multirole fighter aircraft that will serve as the replacement to the F-16.

During an event held in ATK’s Aerospace Structures facility in Clearfield’s Freeport Center, Lockheed Martin and ATK officials and members of Utah’s congressional delegation highlighted ATK’s work on the F-35, as well as the fighter’s role in protecting national security and the program’s economic impact across the U.S. and within Utah.

“The work being done right here at this facility plays a huge role in Hill Air Force Base’s future,” said Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. “The F-35 is the future of the base and the work that is going on here is essential to the jet’s success.”

ATK manufactures several composite structures for the F-35 at the company’s Clearfield facility, including upper and lower wing skins, straps, engine nacelles (the engine housing separate from the fuselage), covers and inlet ducts.

Hill is listed as the Air Force’s preferred alternative for the location of the first two operational squadrons of the jet and a possible third squadron.

The move would bring 72 new jets to the base. Hill currently has two F-16 squadrons and 48 jets.

Hill also provides modification and maintenance support on the F-35.

Both Hatch and Utah Congressman Rob Bishop said F-35s at Hill would help secure future workloads at the base.

“The F-35 at Hill, with both the maintenance and the operational wings, helps Hill be more viable if there is ever anything like a BRAC (Base Realignment and Closure Commission),” Bishop said. “And you just never know when something like that may come along.”

Hatch said he believes Hill is in a good position should another round of BRAC come along, but the F-35 squadrons put the base in a class above the rest.

“(BRAC) is always a concern,” the senator said. “Let’s just say I’ve been in the Senate for 37 years, and there hasn’t been a year when I haven’t had to make sure Hill was in good shape. But with the F-35, we’re in a great spot.”

While the discussion at Wednesday’s event centered around Hill, officials also lauded the F-35’s economic impact.

Bob Delaney, an executive at F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin, said more than 1,000 jobs are associated with the jet in Utah, creating an $80 million economic impact. Nationwide, Delaney said, more than 125,000 jobs are associated with the F-35.

The Air Force expects the F-35 to reach the stage of “initial operation capability” by December 2016.

http://www.standard.net/stories/2013/08/22/atk-celebrates-150th-wing-skin-f-35-lightning-ii-clearfield
 
More news of another F-35 cost reduction.

http://goo.gl/a5Lkh2

(Reuters) - Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) said it is close to an agreement with the Pentagon for a more portable and 40 percent cheaper version of the operations and logistics system that controls the F-35 fighter, the Pentagon's most expensive weapons program.
More at the jump.
 
Making Progress on F-35 Helmet, But

Pentagon acquisition chief Frank Kendall said the F-35 strike fighter program is making progress on the aircraft's sophisticated pilot helmet, but is continuing to fund a less-capable alternative as a backup, just in case, reported Reuters. Speaking during a Reuters-sponsored symposium in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 4, Kendall said he was still hopeful the helmet would function as envisioned, fusing data from the aircraft's many sensors. He also wants to see the helmet's cost come down. Rockwell Collins and Israel’s Elbit are developing the helmet, while BAE Systems in maturing the alternative design in case the primary one is not ready on time to meet the F-35's fielding schedule. Last September, Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan, current F-35 program executive officer, said the main helmet was facing developmental challenges and was still "rudimentary" in its capability.
 
F-35 Remains Top Priority Despite Declining Budgets

Frank Kendall, the Pentagon's top acquisition authority, said he does not expect the Navy to have to significantly reduce the size of its F-35 buy if budget sequestration continues into Fiscal 2015—a move that could potentially increase the cost of F-35 variants for the Air Force, Marine Corps, and international partners, reported Reuters. "I don't see any indication that the Navy is going to change its plans in any fundamental way," said Kendall on Sept. 4 at Reuters' aerospace and defense symposium in Washington, D.C. In late August, Bloomberg reported that the Navy might have to cut "unspecified numbers" of F-35s and buys of other airplane types. Kendall "strongly endorsed" the F-35 and its capabilities on Wednesday, saying Pentagon leaders next month would assess the long-term ownership cost estimate just released by the F-35 program office. He said he was surprised by how much the cost dropped in the estimate—from $1.1 trillion to $857 billion for the United States to operate a fleet of 2,443 F-35s for 55 years—although he had expected the number to fall somewhat, according to Reuters.
 
Northrop Developing Laser Missile Jammer For F-35
ThNDR-NorthropGrumman.jpg


September 12, 2013 Credit: Northrop GrummanNorthrop Grumman has begun company-funded development of a Directed Infrared Countermeasures (Dircm) system for fast jets, anticipating a requirement to protect the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter from heat-seeking air-to-air and surface-to-air missiles.

“We believe the requirement is there, and coming quickly, and that the first opportunity will be on the F-35,” says Jeff Palombo, senior vice president and general manager of Northrop’s land and self-protection systems division.

Northrop plans to begin testing a prototype of the Threat Nullification Defensive Resource (ThNDR) system in its system-integration laboratory by year’s end, he revealed at a briefing in Washington Sept. 12.


Much more at the jump

http://www.aviationweek.com/Article.aspx?id=/article-xml/awx_09_12_2013_p0-615904.xml&p=1&loginAction=true

In case you missed it... they are making Thunder for the Lightning :)
 
Abraham Gubler said:
617 and 809 Sqns, be pretty hard argument to make they got that wrong!


Anyone know what squadrons will follow 617 and 809 to convert to the F-35B?
 
Published on Aug 29, 2013

Hear from the team that launched the first F-35C carrier variant local area flight at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., on Aug. 14, 2013.

http://youtu.be/GDLq3IEcv_4
 
Published on Sep 12, 2013

Royal Air Force Squadron Leader Jim Schofield and Lieutenant Commander Robin Trewinnard-Boyle of the Royal Navy discuss the F-35B's performance during ship suitability testing onboard the USS Wasp in August 2013.

http://youtu.be/DBI7uiDQA6Y
 
Exclusive: Belgium considers Lockheed F-35 to replace F-16s
Tue, Sep 17 2013WASHINGTON (Reuters) -


U.S. government officials have briefed the Belgian government about the capabilities of the Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research,Stock Buzz) F-35 fighter jet, as Brussels prepares to replace its aging fleet of 60 F-16s, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The source, who was not authorized to speak publicly, said Belgium was considering buying 35 to 55 of the new radar-evading F-35 jets. No decisions are expected until late 2014 at the earliest.
Belgium was one of the original NATO partners to buy the F-16 fighter jet, also built by Lockheed; but unlike Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands, it did not join the international consortium that funded development of the F-35.

U.S. government officials have visited Belgium to discuss the F-35, which is being built to replace the F-16 and a dozen other warplanes in use around the world, according to the source.

Neither Lockheed nor a spokesman for the Pentagon's F-35 program office had any immediate comment.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal-Esa, editing by Ros Krasny and Gerald E. McCormick)
 
Published on Sep 19, 2013 by Lockheed Martin

Hear from the Marine and Navy aviators and maintainers that were aboard the USS Wasp for F-35B ship trials in August 2013.

http://youtu.be/29-l73Im8rA
 
F-35 Program Chief Cites Steady Progress
(Source: US Air Force; issued Sept. 19, 2013)

WASHINGTON --- Citing changes to one of the Defense Department’s most ambitious acquisition programs, F-35 Lightning II development is making steady progress, the F-35 Joint Program Executive Officer said here Sept. 17.

Air Force Lt. Gen. Christopher C. Bogdan told military and industry experts at the Air Force Association’s 2013 Air & Space Conference and Technology Exposition that the program has changed for the better over recent years.

“A number of years ago there was not a great balance of risk between industry and the government,” Bogdan said, noting that a year later, the progress, though accelerating, will still take time.

Among the improvements, Bogdan reported increases in flight testing, including plus-ups in testing locations and qualified personnel resulting in increased production.

“This program is slow because it is vast,” he said. “Progress takes a lot of time, but time is something we don’t have a whole lot of.”

The general said he was confident the U.S. Air Force will have what it needs by 2016 to declare initial operating capability.

“I’m also confident that ... our Italian partners and our Israeli friends will get delivery of their airplanes.”

Other changes include the establishment of a “cost war room,” an industry-financed office, which Bogdan said integrates industry and government experts in manufacturing, supply-chain and cost-analysis to monitor and control costs.

Also essential to driving down costs, Bogdan said, is increased buy-in and support from partner nations.

The general cited an example that the Netherlands recently announced their commitment to purchase the fifth-generation fighter as replacement for their aging fleet of F-16s.

“When we buy more aircraft, the price per airplane comes down,” Bogdan explained. “From a warfighting perspective, the ability for us to be side by side with our allies, flying the same aircraft with ... similar capabilities in an (area of responsibility), is a very powerful signal to the rest of the world that we are one team.” (ends)
 
Ship Trials Bring F-35b Capability, Operational Utility Into Focus[
(Source: Lockheed Martin; issued September 19, 2013)

FORT WORTH, Texas --- Recent ship trials for the Lockheed Martin F-35B onboard the USS Wasp [LHD-1] underscored the fifth-generation fighter’s unique capabilities and operational utility according to Marines and sailors alike.

In a video released today, U.S. Navy Capt. Erik Etz stated, “A fifth-generation aircraft, such as the F-35, will open up threat areas where previous legacy fighters that operate off L-class ships weren’t even invited to play. So, an F-35B operating from this type of ship really gives a joint war-fighting commander different options to affect change in the world wherever it is necessary.”

Marine Corps Capt. Mike Kingen, an F-35 test pilot, added, “Ship-borne capabilities are important for the F-35B because they are important for the Marine Corps. Having F-35B, having a stealth platform that’s organic to that unit will allow us to support the Marines…. The F-35 is going to allow future pilots to worry less about stick and rudder skills and more about executing the mission.”

“The fact that the Harrier was not fly by wire at all, there was nothing in between me and the flight controls,” said Marine Corps Maj. Michael Rountree, an F-35 test pilot. “So, I could do things in the Harrier that would very specifically get me killed if I did them incorrectly. Whereas in this airplane there is a level of protection between me and those flight control surfaces. So in a mission – you know up and away from the ship – that’s going to allow me more time to think about the tactical picture, thinking about how I’m going to support the Marines on the ground.”

During the 18-day long ship trials, two F-35Bs conducted a series of tests to determine the aircraft’s suitability for sea-based operations. The aircraft completed 95 vertical landings, 19 of which were conducted at night, and 94 short takeoffs. The ship trials, known as Developmental Test-II, were a key milestone on the Marine Corps’ path to Initial Operating Capability which is scheduled for 2015.


Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs about 116,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration, and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products, and services. The Corporation's net sales for 2012 were $47.2 billion. (ends)
 
Tyndall Unit Provides Battlefield Awareness for Eglin F-35s
(Source: US Air Force; issued Sept. 24, 2013)

TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- Air battle managers from the 337th Air Control Squadron here recently became eyes in the skies for the Air Force's newest 5th generation fighter.

The F-35 Lightning II, based at Eglin Air Force Base with the 33rd Fighter Wing, requires a different set of operating rules than other fighters, and this new set of rules is being written by air battle manager instructors which have had the opportunity to control the F-35.

"Starting to control the F-35s in the sense of the day is not a significant event." said Lt. Col. Gary Smith, 337th ACS commander. "What is significant is we have the next generation of air dominance."

Colonel Smith explained that air battle managers provide pilots with information they may not have. This information could include vectors to the nearest refueling tanker or simply an update of how many enemies are in a particular area. The information a pilot may need varies from aircraft to aircraft. Air battle managers are responsible for knowing the different capabilities of each aircraft, and making sure the information they pass is relevant to the pilot.

Air battle managers go through a nine month training course at the 337th ACS here at Tyndall, which is home to the Air Force's other 5th generation fighter, The F-22 Raptor. Instructors at the ACS have learned that what is required by an F-22 pilot may not be required by an F-35 pilot, Smith said. As they learn exactly what an F-35 pilot needs, they are able to instruct students on what has to be communicated. This helps every instructor become more efficient at training future air battle managers.

"We teach initial skills training," Smith said. "We teach air to air, air to ground, large force employment and aviation principles. More than that, we teach fundamentals of command and control."

Until recently, air battle managers teamed with the 325th Fighter Wing to learn how to control fighters like the F-22, but the F-35 has remained out of reach. As F-35 training and testing progresses, Team Tyndall air battle manager instructors are having more of a role.

"The relationship we have with the 33rd is becoming as important as our relationship has, and continues to be, with the 325th," said Smith.

Other air battle managers are also taking notice of the capabilities the aircraft has to offer. "I have been very impressed with the F-35 so far," Capt. Gary Foshee, 337th ACS instructor said. "It has been eye-opening to tactically control America's latest 5th generation fighter."

While the F-35 may be one step closer to being guided by air battle managers on a regular basis, Smith said it is not intended to be a replacement to fourth and 5th generation fighters currently in use. If anything, the F-35 will work in tandem with other fourth and 5th generation fighters to accomplish the mission.

"The F-35 is going to compliment the F-22," Smith said. "It's the shiny new penny."
Every aircraft an air battle manager controls provides different benefits for different situations.

As the F-35 inches closer to being fully operational in the Combat Air Force, air battle mangers are looking forward to the possibilities that come with it, said Foshee.

"As an instructor air battle manager, I look forward to the operational fielding of the F-35, not only across the Combat Air Force, but also our sister services and partner nations," Foshee said. "The F-35 has big shoes to fill, but she is up to the task." (ends)
 
F-35: New Fighter Creates New Culture for 21st Century and Beyond
(Source: U.S Air Force; issued September 24, 2013)

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --- She didn’t have a smudge on her. Not a leak found anywhere. She even had that “new jet smell.” Skies were blue, everything was perfect. Those were the conditions on that July day in 2011 when Lt. Col. Eric Smith took off from the Lockheed facilities at Fort Worth, Texas, in the first operational F-35 to fly to its permanent home at Eglin Air Force Base, in the Florida panhandle. And the rest, according to Smith, who would go on to pick up three of the first six F-35s from the factory, is history.

“It was just a great day – I was just a little bit nervous because I knew that if I messed it up it would be on the front page of every newspaper in the country,” said Smith. As he approached the runway at Eglin, he found bleachers full of people and a red carpet rolled out to signify the beginning of an era for not only the plane, but for the newly reorganized 33rd Fighter Wing, Eglin Air Force Base and the future of Air Force air superiority for the 21st Century.

The pick of the 33rd Fighter Wing “Nomads” to transition the Air Force’s newest and most lethal fighter into this century and beyond was no accident. With a history that dates back to World War II when the wing was a pursuit group, the 33rd showcased the F-4 Phantom during Vietnam and the F-15 Eagle through crises such as Grenada, Panama, Desert Storm, and post 9/11, when the Nomads provided armed over-watch throughout North America for Operation Noble Eagle, securing two presidents of the United States and multiple space shuttle launches.

“On Oct. 1, 2009, we stood up as an F-35 unit,” said Lt. Col. Matt Renbarger, 58th Fighter Squadron commander. “We were handed keys to an empty building, with five pilots, a technical sergeant, two lieutenant colonels and three majors.”

Renbarger and Smith both admitted that those early days, following the arrival of the first F-35, was a whirlwind of planning, creating policy and guidelines and putting together a training program with a syllabus, academics, and a completely new maintenance program.

Smith said that the early days with the first few aircraft were a challenge, not only for the pilots, but for the newly trained crew chiefs as well. “There was a lot of tech data that the technicians needed before they could work on the airplane, so the first six planes we delivered sat for about eight months before we were issued flight clearance. We didn’t receive our first flight clearance until March of 2012. “

Renbarger said that, like anything brand new and right out of the box, there were a lot of things that had to be learned that weren’t known before. He said that as a training unit, it was more Air Combat Command versus Air Education and Training Command. “It’s not a different mindset, but it’s more of a different mission. Here we create new pilots and maintainers, so we don’t have the downrange focus. Training pilots is our product.

“When test pilots at Edwards find something they tell us, and when we find something we tell them. When software is released they’ll come down here and tell us things they’ve learned. We’ll take new capabilities and bring them into our training syllabus. The folks at Edwards bring us the latest so we can teach the people who teach the people. We teach the teachers and the teachers teach the students.”

Renbarger said there is a lot to like about the F-35, from the standpoint of the pilot, the maintainer, the trainer, down to the bottom line of mission success. “I’ve never seen a pilot come back from his first sortie without a huge smile on his face. It’s something new, and programs like this only come around every 30 years or so, and to be on the ground floor – it’s the perfect time.

“Most pilots come from the F-16, F-15 and A-10 legacy aircraft. Sensors on the front of the F-35 allow us to have that 360-degree awareness. That was the big leap forward. Computer technology that is 30 years or more advanced than the legacy aircraft is what makes the F-35 so advanced.”

Lt. Col. Anthony Pelkington is the 33rd FW chief of safety and was one of the first of the legacy pilots selected for the F-35 program. He said that for pilots transitioning from those legacy systems, the F-35 is a huge deal.

“For 10 years in the F-16, I dealt with essentially monochrome cathode ray displays – approximately 6 inch square – and I’ve got two of them. Now I move up to a contiguous 8 x 20- inch color display that is a huge step forward for the pilot’s situational awareness. Plus, there’s a lot more capability in the display itself.

“In the F-16, I had a radar display with a selectable, like turning pages in a book, something that would show my ordnances like I had a stick figure map with monochrome lines on a black background. It would try to give us a semblance of where we were to maybe a weapons system. But I had to choose. Every one of those displays was limited to the confines of that small 6-inch to 8-inch screen.

“In the F-35, we now have this massive amount of screen real estate. I can now see multiple sensors at once, which is great because I don’t have to pick and choose. I don’t have to take away my situational awareness with what the radar is telling me in terms of traffic to bring up situational awareness and what the target pod looks like. It’s all there available for me.”

Pelkington added that one of the best aspects of the fifth generation fighter is its ability to communicate with all aspects of the aircraft, as well as customize information to fit each pilot’s needs. “The displays talk to each other, the sensors talk to each other, and a lot of information is displayed in sensible formats with other sensors in one combined picture. Now I can bring up large formats on displays so I can see things easier – I can even bring up many formats if I want with a different orientation on how the displays will look. Whatever I want to do to aid my situational awareness I can do and the reality, as a pilot, is that I can customize that setup quite easily to a format that best suits how a pilot understands.”

The wing’s safety chief said that one of the biggest advantages to the F-35 over legacy aircraft is the growth in options. “Choosing between a pilot’s eye and ‘god’s eye are all in the system now and weren’t in the F-16. I had one particular display option for radar format for the F-16 – I couldn’t choose anything else. I had to learn to read it in that manner. Which didn’t necessarily match how somebody looking out on a battlefield could see the picture. So you always had to do that conversion in your mind. With the F-35 you can choose the display format that best suits your ability, and there are multiple options to allow you to see things from a ‘god’s eye’ perspective. It allows me to see from a much greater perspective than the F-16 ever allowed.”

The equipment

Tech. Sgt. Andre Baskin is the wing’s aircrew flight equipment NCOIC, responsible for equipping pilots with the specialized gear required to fly the world’s most state-of-the-art aircraft. He and his small staff of specialists agree that the differences between the F-35 helmet and the rest are many.

“One of the biggest differences the F-35 helmet has over the others is that the new helmet encompasses multiple gadgets such as night vision goggles, and for that function you would have to modify the pilot’s flying helmet and add the components on there,” said Baskin. “With the F-35, it’s all encompassed in the helmet. The cameras on the jet work in sync with the helmet and whatever the jet picks up visually will be displayed on the visor in the helmet.”

From a pilot’s point of view, Renbarger agrees that the nicest part of the new helmet is that everything is self-contained. “The best thing about the F-35 helmet is that it has a big visor with a big display, and we can display a night vision camera visual on the visor and then a distributor aperture system that is basically a set of cameras that are all over the airplane and work in the infrared spectrum. That can be displayed on our visor as well.

“When we get our helmet fit, there is actually a complicated scan process that takes an image of our heads and provides a laser cut-out foam insert for the helmet that is molded to our heads. Then there’s ear cups that close the helmet around our head and a custom nape strap in the back that basically locks the helmet down on our heads. There’s very little, if any, motion in the helmet when we move our head around. Very well balanced, a very well fit and it feels great wearing the helmet. It’s very specific to each individual pilot.”

Pelkington also talked about the difference between the traditional G-suit, which offers pilots about a G and a half of protection, to the one used by F-35 pilots. “Some pilots acclimate to the Gs by genetic makeup, some by experience and can develop a tolerance for 5-ish Gs. With the new suit you can now go up to 7 or 8 Gs without ever having to strain. When you’re focused on pulling Gs -- on making sure your eyesight doesn’t gray out – your mind isn’t thinking about the adversary or the situation or the awareness of the battlespace. When you can pull 7 or 8 Gs without having to think about it, combined with the fusion of all the systems and the display on the glass set up the way you want to see it…it’s an amazing reduction in pilot workload.”

The maintainers

Senior Master Sgt. Paul Fulkerson is the production superintendent with the 58th Aircraft Maintenance Unit who is on the ground floor of maintenance for the F-35. He said that for F-35 maintainers, the biggest element that sets them apart is the electronic maintenance program called ALIS. Standing for Autonomic Logistics Information System, ALIS, according to Fulkerson, has all of the forms needed to perform maintenance on the new aircraft.

“With ALIS, there are no paper forms and the system allows maintainers to pretty much manage the fleet with the information on the computer,” said Fulkerson. “With the F-16s, we had to use paper tech data to perform maintenance, where you followed it step-by-step to do the task. With ALIS, our maintainers us ‘tough books,’ where they read the tech data on the screen.”

While a very young aircraft, Pelkington said the F-35, maintenance-wise, is very stable and makes a lot of information available to both the pilot and maintainer that isn’t available on the legacy aircraft.

“Oftentimes, in a legacy aircraft, you don’t know that something is wrong until you have a major systems failure that generates a warning in the aircraft. The aircraft can no longer perform to spec. A lot of warnings in the F-35 tend to be advisory, that says ‘this is going to have to be worked on by maintenance when you land.’ In the F-35, there’s no mission degradation. When a pilot gets back, there’s a load of data on every aspect of how the aircraft performs. From the maintenance standpoint, it gives them an awesome opportunity to catch issues before they become problems.”

Staff Sgt. Michael Sanders is an F-35 crew chief who has been with the program for the past three years and has more than a decade of experience on the F-16 and F-15 as a backshop engine maintainer. He explained that while maintainers in the legacy aircraft normally specialized in one area, such as engines or avionics, in the F-35, maintainers do it all.

“My job is completely different now from in the past. We would handle all teardown and build-up required for the engine, whereas now, we perform maintenance on the F-35 as a whole. We’re trained on all maintenance tasks, including the engine. I traveled TDY to Connecticut where I performed teardown and buildup for the new aircraft.”

Training

The F-35 Academic Training Center, or ATC, is a sprawling complex responsible for every facet of F-35 training at Eglin. From pilots to maintainers to support Airmen, the ATC has developed, or is in the process of developing, the training syllabuses, procedures, guidelines, certifications and “textbooks” that will become the training standard for decades to come, according to Renbarger.

He said that for pilots, training in the F-35 simulator is by far, the best there is. “I’ve flown in F-16 simulators and F-22 simulators and the F-35 simulator is truly state-of-the-art. They’ve got the best visuals, full dome coverage, 360-degree views, target set build-up, they have runways and very much replicates flying the airplane. I haven’t heard one pilot say it wasn’t the best simulator they’ve ever been in short of flying the airplane.”

Renbarger added that because the F-35 is a single-seat plane, the first time a pilot flies the F-35, he’s by himself, making the simulator even more critical. “The operational flight software that runs the airplane – that same software is in the simulator,” said Renbarger. “In other aircraft I have flown, there have been differences between the simulator and the airplane. This is as close as I’ve ever seen between the simulator and airplane. Exact same cockpit. The cockpit sits on a rail and you sit in the cockpit and it drives forward and raises up inside the dome and the screens you see are the exact same screens you see on the jet.”

On the maintenance side, students are confronted with a similar real-world view, with a weapons load trainer mock-up of the F-35 that contains everything but the tail and the cockpit. Tech. Sgt. Adam Zakrzewski is an ATC instructor with Detachment 19 of the 372nd Training Squadron. He said that during training on the F-35, students will practice opening and closing doors, checking the hydraulics levels, oil levels, etc., but there’s a big difference between maintenance on legacy aircraft versus the F-35.

“There are a lot more steps in gaining access to the legacy aircraft than there are to accessing the F-35,” said Zakrzewski. “I’m an old A-10 guy, where you have to unfasten 200 screws to get a door panel open. On the F-35, there’s one interface connect and click two buttons.”

Tech. Sgt. Justin Weddle is an ATC instructor and flight chief with the field training detachment of the 372nd Training Squadron, who says that in normal maintenance training, instructors would give students a PowerPoint presentation, cover some TOs and give students hands-on training on the aircraft.

“The maintenance group would have to give up an aircraft or whatever students were training on such as a weapons system, AGE, anything like that. At the ATC, and in the F-35 training plan, we begin with an EML, or electronic mediated lecture, kind of like the traditional PowerPoint, but it’s done through an electronic system.” Weddle said the student will then transition, in the same classroom and setting, to more self-paced training on the computer. “It’s just a reinforcement of what the instructor has said during his portion of the training.

“Students will then go through an ASMT, which is an aircraft systems maintenance trainer. It’s essentially an avatar, and from that you go and do whatever task you’re learning about. Whether you are installing a hydraulic pump or some other portion of the aircraft. On one side of the screen, students will have their avatar and on the other they’ll have their joint tech data laptop and they can follow all of the steps exactly. That way the training is not all front-loaded, it can be weaved in and out of the training course.”

F-35: Fighter of the future

In addition to the Air Force’s F-35A, the Marine Corps and the Navy have their own versions of the F-35. The F-35B will give the Marine Corps a short take-off and vertical landing capability, while the Navy’s F-35C will give them a carrier-based capability. Smith believes that for the future of the F-35, it may not change the way we fly, but it will make the U.S. and its allies the dominant air power for the next 30 to 50 years.

“That’s the beauty of the F-35. There are three variants out there, but all three are going to use the same system software. So as they develop something new for our country, our allies who fly the F-35 will get that same capability. That will make integration much smoother.”

Since Smith’s journey home with the first F-35 in 2011, Air Force, Marine, Navy and U.K. pilots have amassed more than 3,100 flying hours in the three versions, flying more than 2,300 sorties.

To those who have spent the past the past four or five years learning the intricacies of a new aircraft -- how to fly it, how to fix it and how to create a plan to teach it, the F-35 has become much more than an airplane showcasing state-of-the-art technology. For the men and women of the 33rd Fighter Wing at Eglin, responsible for getting the F-35 ready for its grand entrance as the dominant airpower for the 21st Century and beyond, it has spawned a completely new culture and way of life.

-ends-
 
New Inspector General report announced by Bloomberg: Lockheed F-35 Quality Failings Cited by Inspector General
[...]
The watchdog office’s “quality assessment” outlines what it calls ineffective management by Pentagon oversight personnel and insufficient attention to quality assurance in the design and manufacturing phases of the $391.2 billion F-35 program, according to a summary obtained by Bloomberg News. The full report may be issued as soon as Sept. 30.
[...]
The inspector general’s audit said the F-35 program office should modify its contracts to “include a quality escape clause, to ensure the government does not pay for nonconforming product,” according to the summary.
[...]
Siebert, the Lockheed spokeswoman, said in an e-mailed statement that the report “is based on data that’s more than 16 months old and a majority of the corrective action requests” in the document “have been closed.”
[...]
 
F-35B BF-33 First Flight

Lockheed Martin test pilot Billie Flynn was at the controls for the first flight of F-35B BF-33 (US Navy Bureau Number 168731). The flight occurred on 3 September 2013 with takeoff and landing at NAS Fort Worth JRB, Texas.
 

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Sep' 21, BF-34 up in the air which is the last LRIP-4 A/C and the 80th F-35 to fly
 

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Lockheed Martin test pilot Bill Gigliotti was at the controls for the first flight of F-35B BF-30 (US Navy Bureau Number 168728). The flight occurred on 18 September 2013 with takeoff and landing at NAS Fort Worth JRB, Texas.
 

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Lockheed Martin test pilot Al Norman was at the controls for the first flight of F-35A AF-31 (US Air Force serial number 11-5020). The flight occurred on 7 September 2013 with takeoff and landing at NAS Fort Worth JRB, Texas.


 

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UPDATE 1-Pentagon finalizes $7.8 bln in F-35 contracts with Lockheed
Fri, Sep 27 2013
By Andrea Shalal-Esa

WASHINGTON, Sept 27 (Reuters) - The Pentagon on Friday said it had finalized two contracts with Lockheed Martin Corp valued at $7.8 billion for 71 more F-35 fighter jets, citing what it called significant reductions in the cost of the new radar-evading warplane.

The U.S. Defense Department said it signed a $4.4 billion contract for a sixth batch of 36 F-35 aircraft, with the average cost of the planes down 2.5 percent from the previous deal. All but $743 million of that amount had already been awarded to the company under a preliminary contract.

The two sides also signed a $3.4 billion contract for 35 aircraft in a seventh batch, which reflected a 6 percent drop in the average price from the fifth group, it said in a statement.
The Pentagon's F-35 program office said the cost of each F-35 conventional takeoff A-model jet would drop to $98 million in the seventh batch of jets, excluding the engine, from $103 million in the sixth lot. It marks the first time the price of the jet will have dipped below $100 million.

The U.S. government buys the engines directly from Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp, under a separate contract.

The Pentagon has projected it will spend $392 billion to buy a total of 2,443 stealthy F-35 fighter jets over the next few decades to replace F-16, F-15, F/A-18 and other warplanes used by the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps.
The program is years behind schedule and nearly 70 percent over original cost estimates, but U.S. officials said last week the program is now making progress in flight testing, production and long-term operating costs.
Lockheed and the Pentagon announced an agreement in principle for the next 71 jets on July 30. Rear Admiral Randy Mahr, deputy director of the Pentagon's F-35 program office, had told reporters on Wednesday that he expected the contracts to be wrapped up within days.

Lorraine Martin, Lockheed's F-35 program manager, said production costs had declined with each successive lot of jets.

"That's a trend we look forward to continuing as this program moves toward full rate production and operational maturity," Martin said in a statement provided to Reuters.

"Working together with the Joint Program Office, our entire industrial team is focused on delivering the F-35's 5th-generation capabilities to our armed forces and partner nations at a 4th-generation price point," she said.
Industry executives use the phrase fifth-generation to refer to the jet's stealthy coatings and other features that make it nearly invisible to enemy radar.

Lockheed is building three variants of the F-35 for the U.S. military and eight countries that helped fund its development: Britain, Canada, Australia, Turkey, Italy, Norway, Denmark, and the Netherlands.
Israel and Japan have also placed orders for the jets.

The F-35 remains in the running for a 60-jet South Korean fighter competition after Seoul this week rejected a bid by Boeing Co involving its F-15 Silent Eagle fighter jet.
Lockheed's main subcontractors on the program are Northrop Grumman Corp and Britain's BAE Systems Plc.

The Pentagon said the price of the B-model that Lockheed is building for the Marine Corps, would drop to $104 million in the seventh group from $109 million in the sixth. It said the cost of the C-model variant, which will be able to land and take off from aircraft carriers, would drop to $116 million a jet from $120 million in the sixth lot.

The contracts also reduce the government's exposure to cost overruns, according to the Pentagon's statement, with Lockheed agreeing to cover any cost overruns. The government and Lockheed would share returns on a 20-80 split basis if costs come in below target, it said.

The two sides will share equally the costs of all known retrofits needed for the aircraft, while any newly discovered changes could result in higher contract costs, the Pentagon said.
 

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