It was a shocking story right from the start, and got more so by the end of the week.
I'm talking about the Germanwings A320 that crashed in the French Alps Tuesday, killing 150 people. Some of the initial reports, of course, talked about the 24-year-old plane itself, and pointed out that it was inspected as recently as the day before the crash.
But by the end of the week it was clear that this was no accident and nothing was wrong with the plane itself. German co-pilot Andreas Lubitz locked the pilot out of the cockpit when the pilot left him alone at the controls. He took the plane, on a flight from Barcelona, Spain, to Duesseldorf, Germany, on an intentional eight-minute descent that ended in rugged terrain on the side of a mountain. (Post)
The crash was of interest to this region because of the type of plane. Airbus will be opening an A320 final assembly line in Mobile, Ala., later this year.
-- In another story during the week, Airbus said it delivered its 9,000th aircraft, an A321, to Vietnamese carrier VietJetAir. Airbus delivered its first A300 in 1974, and its lineup today includes the A320 family and the world’s largest aircraft, the double deck A380. Over the last 10 years, Airbus has doubled its deliveries to reach over 600 aircraft a year today. (Post)
-- Also during the week, we learned that machinists at the Boeing plant in North Charleston, S.C., will vote April 22 on union representation. Voting will take place at five separate locations at the Boeing campus. There are about 3,000 workers at Boeing's 787 complex in South Carolina. Earlier an Airbus official said he fully expects unions to target the Airbus plant being built in Mobile, Ala.(Post)
Growth
New figures from the U.S. Census Bureau show two metro areas in the Gulf Coast I-10 aerospace region were among the 20 fastest growing in the nation from 2013 to 2014. Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, Ala., with a growth of 2.4 percent, was 14th fastest growing, while Panama City, Fla., with a growth of 2.2 percent, was 19th.
Other metro areas in the region also grew: Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, Fla., ranked 37, had a growth rate of 1.9 percent; Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, Fla., ranked 87, had a rate of 1.2 percent; Gulfport-Biloxi-Pascagoula, Miss., ranked 124, had a growth rate of 1 percent; New Orleans, ranked 142, had a growth rate of .8 percent; and Mobile, Ala., ranked 267, had a rate of .1 percent. (Post)
F-35
Australia's first F-35A pilot, Squadron Leader Andrew Jackson, took his first flight in an F-35A aircraft at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., on March 17. He flew a U.S. Air Force F-35A because Australian F-35A aircraft are currently located at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., in anticipation of the opening of a pilot training center there in mid-2015. (Post)
Airport
A spike in military aviation operations kept activity at Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport from taking a dip in February. Airport Executive Director Parker McClellan said there were 3,665 aircraft operations in February 2015 compared to 3,703 in 2014. Airline operations were down 2.86 percent, general aviation operations dropped 18.63 percent and military operations increased 58.75 percent. (Post)
Space
United Launch Alliance's Delta IV Heavy vehicle was chosen by NASA last week to launch the Solar Probe Plus mission to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere. The mission is scheduled to launch in July 2018 from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The Delta IV Heavy vehicle features a center common booster core along with two strap-on common booster cores, each powered by the RS-68 engine. The Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-68 engines are assembled and tested at Stennis Space Center, Miss. (Post)
-- NASA selected IT Federal Sales of Windham, N.H., to provide SAP software and maintenance support services to all NASA centers and associated facilities with a Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) estimated at $23.1 million. The BPA is available for use by all NASA centers and associated facilities through March 31, 2018. The SAP agreement is administered by the NASA Shared Services Center at Stennis Space Center, Miss. (Post)
Contracts
Kaman Precision Products Inc., Orlando, Fla., was awarded a $58 million modification to a previously awarded contract for Lot 12 production of Joint Programmable Fuze systems. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. … Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz., was awarded a $528.8 million contract modification to exercise the option on a previously awarded contract for Advanced Medium Range Air to Air Missile Lot 29 production and other AMRAAM system items. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. … Sierra Nevada Corp., Sparks, Nev., was awarded a $15.1 million modification to exercise and option to a previously awarded contract to provide for contractor logistics services in support of the AC-130W and AC-130J precision strike package. Work will be performed at Hurlburt Field, Fla., Cannon Air Force Base, N.M., and various deployment locations. ... Rolls-Royce Corp., Indianapolis, Ind., was awarded a $93.6 million modification to a previously awarded contract to exercise an option to provide intermediate, depot level maintenance and related logistics support for about 223 in-service T-45 F405-RR-401 Adour engines and MKII gas turbine starters. Work will be performed at the Naval Air Station Meridian, Miss., NAS Kingsville, Texas, NAS Pensacola, Fla., and NAS Patuxent River, Md. … Boeing of St. Louis, Mo., was awarded a $28.5 million modification to exercise the option on the purchase of QF-16 Full-Scale Aerial Target (FSAT) Lot 3. This option is for the purchase of 25 QF-16 FSATs and 25 four-year warranties of the QF-16 drone-peculiar equipment. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity.
PERSPECTIVES: Commentary and analysis on aerospace and defense activities in the Gulf Coast
Saturday, March 28, 2015
Saturday, March 21, 2015
Week in review (3/15 to 3/21)
There was a story this week about the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers filing a petition with the National Labor Relations Board to hold an election for 2,400 production workers at the Boeing plant in North Charleston, S.C.
The plant opened in late 2011 and is one of two final assembly and delivery points for the 787. Boeing last month opened a new propulsion plant in North Charleston and now employs about 7,500 people in South Carolina. (Post)
You just know that Airbus is keeping an eye on what's going on in South Carolina. Airbus, which will open an A320 final assembly line in Mobile, Ala., this year, has developed a strategy to counter an expected move by unions to organize the Alabama plant. That's the word from Alan McArtor, chairman and chief executive of the Airbus Group.
He said the Airbus business case for the Mobile plant doesn’t rely on whether workers decide to organize, but the company will seek to avoid a union presence by ensuring a rapport and fair treatment of its workers. (Post)
So how are unions doing? According to statistics released earlier this year by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, nationwide there were 14.6 million wage and salary workers who were members of unions in 2014, 11.1 percent of workers. That's down 0.2 percent from 2013.
While that's not much of a drop, the numbers are down considerably from 1983, the first year for which comparable union data are available. In 1983 there were 17.7 million union workers, a membership rate of 20.1 percent.
In the four states that are part of the I-10 aerospace corridor, Mississippi had a union membership rate in 2014 of 3.7 percent and Louisiana had a rate of 5.2 percent. Florida's union membership rate in 2014 was 5.7 percent and Alabama's was 10.8 percent.
Unmanned
A Fire Scout and a Littoral Combat Ship both are making a showing for the first time in an annual war game in South Korea. The exercises began March 2 and will continue through April 24 and involve thousands of U.S. troops and their South Korean counterparts.
This year the USS Fort Worth (LCS 3) is participating. It's one of two LCS designs intended to fight in areas closer to shore than larger ships can enter and to counter attacks by swarms of smaller vessels. Also participating is the MQ-8B Fire Scout unmanned helicopter. Fire Scouts are built in part in Moss Point, Miss.; Austal USA builds the second LCS variant in Mobile, Ala. (Post)
-- In another first involving an unmanned systems, an MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft fired a Hellfire missile at a sea-going target for the first time in a maritime test at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. The test was during Eglin's Weapons Systems Evaluation Program over the Gulf of Mexico on March 16. The missile hit a boat that was being towed by another remotely-controlled vessel. (Post)
-- The first of 13 production QF-16 drones was delivered to the 82nd Aerial Targets Squadron at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., on March 11. The QF-16s will eventually replace the QF-4 as the next generation representative aerial target at Tyndall and Holloman Air Force Base, N.M. The 82nd ATRS is a geographically separated unit of the 53rd Wing, headquartered at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. The first QF-16 for developmental testing arrived at Tyndall in November 2012. (Post)
In memory
Hundreds gathered Friday night on Navarre Beach in a final show of respect for 11 servicemen who died March 10 when a UH-60 helicopter crashed in Santa Rosa Sound during a training mission. Donated Army and Marine flags have been flying on the Navarre Beach Pier since the crash. In a ceremony Friday night those flags were retired. (Story)
Meanwhile, Eglin Air Force Base concluded active recovery efforts Saturday. The Safety Investigation Board from the Army Combat Readiness Center, Fort Rucker, Ala., has convened and Eglin has transferred responsibility of the accident site to the investigation board. All recovered human remains have been transferred to Dover Air Force Base, Del. (Post)
The Louisiana Army National Guard during the week released the names of the four guardsmen, all part of the Guard's 1-244th Assault Helicopter Battalion in Hammond. The seven Marines from Camp Lejeune were identified earlier. (Post)
Bases
Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., will host the Gulf Coast Salute 2015 air show and open house April 11-12. The show will feature the Air Force Thunderbirds flying demonstration team, the Army Golden Knights parachute team and the F-22 Raptor aerial demonstration team. Admission and parking for the show is free. Shuttle bus transportation is to be provided from the parking area to the flight line. (Post)
Contracts
A2R of Huntsville, Ala., was awarded a $23.6 million, five-year laboratory services contract from NASA. A2R will be responsible for providing technical services for laboratory operations at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center and Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. … Raytheon Co., Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz., was awarded a $91.6 million modification to exercise the option on previously awarded contract for Lot 8 of the Miniature Air Launched Decoy Jammer missile. Contractor will provide 250 MALD-J missiles. Work will be performed at Tucson and is expected to be complete by June 30, 2017. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity.
The plant opened in late 2011 and is one of two final assembly and delivery points for the 787. Boeing last month opened a new propulsion plant in North Charleston and now employs about 7,500 people in South Carolina. (Post)
You just know that Airbus is keeping an eye on what's going on in South Carolina. Airbus, which will open an A320 final assembly line in Mobile, Ala., this year, has developed a strategy to counter an expected move by unions to organize the Alabama plant. That's the word from Alan McArtor, chairman and chief executive of the Airbus Group.
He said the Airbus business case for the Mobile plant doesn’t rely on whether workers decide to organize, but the company will seek to avoid a union presence by ensuring a rapport and fair treatment of its workers. (Post)
So how are unions doing? According to statistics released earlier this year by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, nationwide there were 14.6 million wage and salary workers who were members of unions in 2014, 11.1 percent of workers. That's down 0.2 percent from 2013.
While that's not much of a drop, the numbers are down considerably from 1983, the first year for which comparable union data are available. In 1983 there were 17.7 million union workers, a membership rate of 20.1 percent.
In the four states that are part of the I-10 aerospace corridor, Mississippi had a union membership rate in 2014 of 3.7 percent and Louisiana had a rate of 5.2 percent. Florida's union membership rate in 2014 was 5.7 percent and Alabama's was 10.8 percent.
Unmanned
A Fire Scout and a Littoral Combat Ship both are making a showing for the first time in an annual war game in South Korea. The exercises began March 2 and will continue through April 24 and involve thousands of U.S. troops and their South Korean counterparts.
This year the USS Fort Worth (LCS 3) is participating. It's one of two LCS designs intended to fight in areas closer to shore than larger ships can enter and to counter attacks by swarms of smaller vessels. Also participating is the MQ-8B Fire Scout unmanned helicopter. Fire Scouts are built in part in Moss Point, Miss.; Austal USA builds the second LCS variant in Mobile, Ala. (Post)
-- In another first involving an unmanned systems, an MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft fired a Hellfire missile at a sea-going target for the first time in a maritime test at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. The test was during Eglin's Weapons Systems Evaluation Program over the Gulf of Mexico on March 16. The missile hit a boat that was being towed by another remotely-controlled vessel. (Post)
-- The first of 13 production QF-16 drones was delivered to the 82nd Aerial Targets Squadron at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., on March 11. The QF-16s will eventually replace the QF-4 as the next generation representative aerial target at Tyndall and Holloman Air Force Base, N.M. The 82nd ATRS is a geographically separated unit of the 53rd Wing, headquartered at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. The first QF-16 for developmental testing arrived at Tyndall in November 2012. (Post)
In memory
Hundreds gathered Friday night on Navarre Beach in a final show of respect for 11 servicemen who died March 10 when a UH-60 helicopter crashed in Santa Rosa Sound during a training mission. Donated Army and Marine flags have been flying on the Navarre Beach Pier since the crash. In a ceremony Friday night those flags were retired. (Story)
Meanwhile, Eglin Air Force Base concluded active recovery efforts Saturday. The Safety Investigation Board from the Army Combat Readiness Center, Fort Rucker, Ala., has convened and Eglin has transferred responsibility of the accident site to the investigation board. All recovered human remains have been transferred to Dover Air Force Base, Del. (Post)
The Louisiana Army National Guard during the week released the names of the four guardsmen, all part of the Guard's 1-244th Assault Helicopter Battalion in Hammond. The seven Marines from Camp Lejeune were identified earlier. (Post)
Bases
Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., will host the Gulf Coast Salute 2015 air show and open house April 11-12. The show will feature the Air Force Thunderbirds flying demonstration team, the Army Golden Knights parachute team and the F-22 Raptor aerial demonstration team. Admission and parking for the show is free. Shuttle bus transportation is to be provided from the parking area to the flight line. (Post)
Contracts
A2R of Huntsville, Ala., was awarded a $23.6 million, five-year laboratory services contract from NASA. A2R will be responsible for providing technical services for laboratory operations at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center and Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. … Raytheon Co., Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz., was awarded a $91.6 million modification to exercise the option on previously awarded contract for Lot 8 of the Miniature Air Launched Decoy Jammer missile. Contractor will provide 250 MALD-J missiles. Work will be performed at Tucson and is expected to be complete by June 30, 2017. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity.
Saturday, March 14, 2015
Week in review (3/8 to 3/14)
The crash of a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter during a training mission in Northwest Florida on Tuesday took the lives of 11 servicemen, and reminds us again of how risky the military life can be, even without being in a combat zone.
The helicopter from the Louisiana Army National Guard’s 1-244th Assault Helicopter Battalion in Hammond, La., was with another UH-60 on the training mission at Eglin Range A-17 when thick fog enveloped the area. One helicopter returned to base, but the other went down hard in Santa Rosa Sound, separating the mainland from the nearby barrier island. The UH-60 crashed into 25 feet of water around 8:30 p.m.
Seven Marines and four Army helicopter crew members died. (Post) The Marines were all from the 2nd Special Operations Battalion of the Marine Corps Special Operations Command at Camp Lejeune, N.C. The names of the four Louisiana National Guard soldiers who also died in the crash have not yet been released. (Post)
We're a military-friendly region, in part because of all our bases, in part because of all our veterans, in part because of our patriotism. So a tragedy like the UH-60 crash grabs our attention and we mourn along with their friends and families.
Bases
The 86th Fighter Weapons Squadron will conduct flight and boat operations in the Gulf of Mexico eight to 20 miles south of Destin and in Choctawhatchee Bay March 16-19. The operations are part of the 53rd Wing's weapon system evaluation program. Fighter aircraft will release munitions in the morning between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. about eight to 20 nautical miles out in the Gulf of Mexico. Then around 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the bay, about 30 boats will be used as visual targets by fighter aircraft and helicopters flying mid to low level. Eglin held a similar exercise in early February. (Post)
F-35
The first F-35 assembled outside the United States rolled off an assembly line in Italy on Thursday. The F-35A designated AL-1 is being assembled at the final assembly and check out (FACO) facility at Cameri Air Base in northern Italy. The FACO will assemble F-35s for Italy and the Netherlands.
Owned by the Italian Ministry of Defense, Cameri also builds wing sets for the F-35 that will be shipped to Lockheed’s Fort Worth, Texas, assembly line. The plant, operated by Finmeccanica-Alenia Aermacchi and Lockheed Martin, has 750 staff now at the 101-acre facility. Last December, it was chosen by the DoD as Europe's F-35 airframe maintenance, repair, overhaul and upgrade center.
Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home to the F-35 integrated training center. (Post)
-- Pratt and Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Conn., was awarded a $33.9 million modification to a previously awarded contract. The modification provides for retrofit modifications to the production thrust recovery, lift systems, and controller systems for low rate initial production VII F135/600 and F135/100 propulsion systems.
Work will be performed in Oklahoma City, Okla., and is expected to be completed in December 2016. The contract combines purchases for the U.S. Navy/Marine Corps (89.22 percent); the U.S. Air Force (24 percent); and the international partners (10.54 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Post)
Propulsion
Speaking of engines, Turkish Airlines selected Rolls-Royce to supply Trent 700 engines and long-term service support, worth $300 million, to power four Airbus A330 freighter aircraft. The airline already operates 11 A330ceo passenger and five A330 freighter aircraft powered by the Trent 700.
In the A330 freighter market, the Trent 700 now accounts for 90 per cent of aircraft in service and on order. More than 1,500 Trent 700s are now in service or on firm order. Rolls-Royce tests the Trent engines at Stennis Space Center, Miss. (Post)
Airbus
Airbus could commit to a new hike in production of its A320 family of jetliners before the end of the year. A final decision depends in large part on the health of the supply chain. Sales chief John Leahy made the prediction days after the plane maker announced plans to raise production from 42 planes a month now to 50 a month in 2017, almost matching a monthly rate of 52 targeted by Boeing for the following year. Airbus this year will open an A320 final assembly line in Mobile, Ala. (Post)
Unmanned
The U.S. Air Force RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft system has seen a significant
decrease in cost per flight hour coupled with a sharp increase in flight hours, officials said. Global Hawk variants have flown more than 140,000 flight hours in support of diverse surveillance missions.
Meanwhile, an RQ-4B Global Hawk, A2019, embarked on a mission March 7 that sent the aircraft past the 10,000 flying-hour milestone at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia. The aircraft has been providing support to warfighters by relaying communications between people and aircraft as well as enabling airstrikes on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
Fuselage work for all Global Hawk variants is done in Moss Point, Miss. (Post)
F-16
The Air Force's F-16s used for homeland protection need radar upgrades urgently, according to the commander of the First Air Force at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. These are upgrades the service put off due to funding restrictions.
The First Air Force, the numbered Air Force with sole responsibility of ensuring air superiority and air sovereignty of the U.S., recently filed the urgent operational need request with the Air Force Requirements Council for fiscal 2015 funding for its Aerospace Control Alert mission.
The request now being considered, specifically for Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve Block 30 F-16s, seeks the installation of the Northrop Grumman APG-83 SABR active electronically scanned array radar. The radar was part of the combat avionics program extension suite that the Air Force dropped from its fiscal 2015 and 2016 budget requests because of budget shortfalls. (Post)
Contracts
Airbus Defense and Space Inc., Herndon, Va., was awarded a $24 million contract modification to exercise an option to procure Program Year 10 contractor logistics support for UH-72A Lakota Helicopters. Work will be performed at in Columbus, Miss. … Atlas North America LLC, Virginia Beach, Va., was awarded a $14 million contract for depot level repair, maintenance, modifications, engineering services and spare parts for the AN/SLQ-60 Surface Mine Neutralization System. Sixty percent of the work will be done in Panama City Beach, Fla. Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division, Panama City, is the contracting activity.
The helicopter from the Louisiana Army National Guard’s 1-244th Assault Helicopter Battalion in Hammond, La., was with another UH-60 on the training mission at Eglin Range A-17 when thick fog enveloped the area. One helicopter returned to base, but the other went down hard in Santa Rosa Sound, separating the mainland from the nearby barrier island. The UH-60 crashed into 25 feet of water around 8:30 p.m.
Seven Marines and four Army helicopter crew members died. (Post) The Marines were all from the 2nd Special Operations Battalion of the Marine Corps Special Operations Command at Camp Lejeune, N.C. The names of the four Louisiana National Guard soldiers who also died in the crash have not yet been released. (Post)
We're a military-friendly region, in part because of all our bases, in part because of all our veterans, in part because of our patriotism. So a tragedy like the UH-60 crash grabs our attention and we mourn along with their friends and families.
Bases
The 86th Fighter Weapons Squadron will conduct flight and boat operations in the Gulf of Mexico eight to 20 miles south of Destin and in Choctawhatchee Bay March 16-19. The operations are part of the 53rd Wing's weapon system evaluation program. Fighter aircraft will release munitions in the morning between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. about eight to 20 nautical miles out in the Gulf of Mexico. Then around 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the bay, about 30 boats will be used as visual targets by fighter aircraft and helicopters flying mid to low level. Eglin held a similar exercise in early February. (Post)
F-35
The first F-35 assembled outside the United States rolled off an assembly line in Italy on Thursday. The F-35A designated AL-1 is being assembled at the final assembly and check out (FACO) facility at Cameri Air Base in northern Italy. The FACO will assemble F-35s for Italy and the Netherlands.
Owned by the Italian Ministry of Defense, Cameri also builds wing sets for the F-35 that will be shipped to Lockheed’s Fort Worth, Texas, assembly line. The plant, operated by Finmeccanica-Alenia Aermacchi and Lockheed Martin, has 750 staff now at the 101-acre facility. Last December, it was chosen by the DoD as Europe's F-35 airframe maintenance, repair, overhaul and upgrade center.
Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home to the F-35 integrated training center. (Post)
-- Pratt and Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Conn., was awarded a $33.9 million modification to a previously awarded contract. The modification provides for retrofit modifications to the production thrust recovery, lift systems, and controller systems for low rate initial production VII F135/600 and F135/100 propulsion systems.
Work will be performed in Oklahoma City, Okla., and is expected to be completed in December 2016. The contract combines purchases for the U.S. Navy/Marine Corps (89.22 percent); the U.S. Air Force (24 percent); and the international partners (10.54 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Post)
Propulsion
Speaking of engines, Turkish Airlines selected Rolls-Royce to supply Trent 700 engines and long-term service support, worth $300 million, to power four Airbus A330 freighter aircraft. The airline already operates 11 A330ceo passenger and five A330 freighter aircraft powered by the Trent 700.
In the A330 freighter market, the Trent 700 now accounts for 90 per cent of aircraft in service and on order. More than 1,500 Trent 700s are now in service or on firm order. Rolls-Royce tests the Trent engines at Stennis Space Center, Miss. (Post)
Airbus
Airbus could commit to a new hike in production of its A320 family of jetliners before the end of the year. A final decision depends in large part on the health of the supply chain. Sales chief John Leahy made the prediction days after the plane maker announced plans to raise production from 42 planes a month now to 50 a month in 2017, almost matching a monthly rate of 52 targeted by Boeing for the following year. Airbus this year will open an A320 final assembly line in Mobile, Ala. (Post)
Unmanned
The U.S. Air Force RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft system has seen a significant
decrease in cost per flight hour coupled with a sharp increase in flight hours, officials said. Global Hawk variants have flown more than 140,000 flight hours in support of diverse surveillance missions.
Meanwhile, an RQ-4B Global Hawk, A2019, embarked on a mission March 7 that sent the aircraft past the 10,000 flying-hour milestone at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia. The aircraft has been providing support to warfighters by relaying communications between people and aircraft as well as enabling airstrikes on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
Fuselage work for all Global Hawk variants is done in Moss Point, Miss. (Post)
F-16
The Air Force's F-16s used for homeland protection need radar upgrades urgently, according to the commander of the First Air Force at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. These are upgrades the service put off due to funding restrictions.
The First Air Force, the numbered Air Force with sole responsibility of ensuring air superiority and air sovereignty of the U.S., recently filed the urgent operational need request with the Air Force Requirements Council for fiscal 2015 funding for its Aerospace Control Alert mission.
The request now being considered, specifically for Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve Block 30 F-16s, seeks the installation of the Northrop Grumman APG-83 SABR active electronically scanned array radar. The radar was part of the combat avionics program extension suite that the Air Force dropped from its fiscal 2015 and 2016 budget requests because of budget shortfalls. (Post)
Contracts
Airbus Defense and Space Inc., Herndon, Va., was awarded a $24 million contract modification to exercise an option to procure Program Year 10 contractor logistics support for UH-72A Lakota Helicopters. Work will be performed at in Columbus, Miss. … Atlas North America LLC, Virginia Beach, Va., was awarded a $14 million contract for depot level repair, maintenance, modifications, engineering services and spare parts for the AN/SLQ-60 Surface Mine Neutralization System. Sixty percent of the work will be done in Panama City Beach, Fla. Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division, Panama City, is the contracting activity.
Saturday, March 7, 2015
Week in review (2/29 to 3/7)
With both Airbus and Boeing gearing up for increasing production of A320 and 737 jetliners, at least one research firm is warning that there may end up being more planes than the airline market can absorb.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts warn that the two giants may be on a path to produce more jetliners than the airline market can absorb. Airbus and Boeing are planning to hike production of the two families of jets by 20 percent between 2014 and 2018. That’s on top of a previous increase from 2010 to 2014.
But a big drop in aircraft retirements, lower oil prices and the possibility of higher interest rates in the U.S. could combine to weaken demand and lead to a glut of jets, according to the Merrill Lynch analysts.
Of course we’ll have to see how all this pans out over time, but anything about A320 production is of high interest to our region. Airbus is building an assembly line for A320 jets in Mobile, Ala., that will open this year. In fact, the first shipment of large sections from Europe will arrive in Mobile in June.
The first plane, an A321 for JetBlue, will be delivered in 2016, and when in full swing the plant will produce four or five jetliners a month. The company is continuing to hire to fill what will eventually be about 1,000 jobs.
Airbus planes aside, this whole region is gearing up for a larger aerospace footprint. The Alabama Aviation Center is holding an Aviation Career Fair and Open House March 13. It's the second such fair for the Aviation Center in five months.
Ten employers and recruiters from the Air National Guard and Air Force will be on hand. The career fair is coordinated by the Southwest Alabama Workforce Development Council and the aviation center of Enterprise State Community College. The Alabama Aviation Center is at the Mobile Aeroplex. (Post)
Meanwhile, across from Mobile in Pensacola, Fla., Aero Sekur, specialist in helicopter lift-raft and flotation systems, is relocating its U.S. subsidiary from Parsippany, N.J., to a Pensacola site that's three times larger. The move provides the company with an 8,000 square-foot facility for its administrative offices, maintenance repair and overhaul operations and spare parts buildings.
The site is west of Interstate 110 and north of Town and Country Plaza. Aero Sekur, headquartered in Italy, specializes in safety systems and advanced flexible structures for the global aerospace and defense markets. (Post)
There won’t be a lot of jobs associated with the office, seven initially and perhaps twice that as it gears up. But since this region is making a push for more aerospace, any new operation is important and sends a message.
Airports
Three airports in Northwest Florida had increases in their passenger counts in January 2015 compared to January 2014. The newly renamed Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport at Eglin Air Force Base had an 8.56 percent increase. Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport near Panama City had a 5.83 percent increase and Pensacola International Airport had an increase of 4.5 percent. (Post)
Meanwhile, agreements were finalized for United Airlines and Silver Airways to begin service at Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport. United Express started daily service to Houston. Silver Airways is set to kick off service to Orlando and Tampa March 19. (Post)
F-35
The F-35 Joint Program Office has asked Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) to start an initial low-rate production of a new Hand-held Imaging Tool (HIT) that will be able to check the surface of a plane to check its health.
The Air Force currently uses a 1,200-pound piece of equipment and needs two operators and three hours. But AFRL through a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) developed HIT. It's a portable, non-destructive method to inspect an aircraft. It consists of a handheld unit weighing less than seven pounds and an 11-pound backpack that can image 100 percent of an aircraft's surface in 15 minutes.
The test and demonstration was done at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., in late 2014 and led to the culmination of a five-year research effort. So expect to see that device there, since it's home of the F-35 Integrated Training Center. (Post)
-- Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded an $8.2 million modification to a previously awarded contract for the procurement and delivery of electronic components to support low-rate initial production Lot VII F-35 aircraft for the U.S. Air Force, Marine Corps, Navy and international partners. Work will be performed in Fort Worth and is expected to be completed in March 2016.
This contract combines purchases for the Air Force (59.4 percent), Navy (18.7 percent), Marine Corps (12.5 percent), and international partners (9.4 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Post)
-- Pratt and Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Conn., was awarded a $7 million modification to a previously awarded contract for retrofit modifications to the F-135 propulsion system, including production thrust recovery and integrated power package manifold. Work will be performed in Oklahoma City, Okla., and is expected to be completed in December 2016.
This contract combines purchases for the U.S. Air Force (50 percent); the U.S. Navy (49 percent); and the international partners (1 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. The F135 is used in the F-35. (Post)
Contracts
Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., Hurst, Texas, was awarded an $8.4 million modification to a previously awarded contract to exercise an option for delivery of one Bell 407 Analog Helicopter, and preservation and storage of seven aircraft in support of the endurance upgrade of the MQ-8C Fire Scout. Work will be performed in Ozark, Ala., and is expected to be completed in September 2015. Final assembly of Fire Scouts is done at Moss Point, Miss. … L-3 Vertex Aerospace LLC, Madison, Miss., was awarded an $8.8 million modification for F-16 aircraft maintenance for Taiwan. Work will be performed at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., and is expected to be complete by Feb. 29, 2016.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts warn that the two giants may be on a path to produce more jetliners than the airline market can absorb. Airbus and Boeing are planning to hike production of the two families of jets by 20 percent between 2014 and 2018. That’s on top of a previous increase from 2010 to 2014.
But a big drop in aircraft retirements, lower oil prices and the possibility of higher interest rates in the U.S. could combine to weaken demand and lead to a glut of jets, according to the Merrill Lynch analysts.
Of course we’ll have to see how all this pans out over time, but anything about A320 production is of high interest to our region. Airbus is building an assembly line for A320 jets in Mobile, Ala., that will open this year. In fact, the first shipment of large sections from Europe will arrive in Mobile in June.
The first plane, an A321 for JetBlue, will be delivered in 2016, and when in full swing the plant will produce four or five jetliners a month. The company is continuing to hire to fill what will eventually be about 1,000 jobs.
Airbus planes aside, this whole region is gearing up for a larger aerospace footprint. The Alabama Aviation Center is holding an Aviation Career Fair and Open House March 13. It's the second such fair for the Aviation Center in five months.
Ten employers and recruiters from the Air National Guard and Air Force will be on hand. The career fair is coordinated by the Southwest Alabama Workforce Development Council and the aviation center of Enterprise State Community College. The Alabama Aviation Center is at the Mobile Aeroplex. (Post)
Meanwhile, across from Mobile in Pensacola, Fla., Aero Sekur, specialist in helicopter lift-raft and flotation systems, is relocating its U.S. subsidiary from Parsippany, N.J., to a Pensacola site that's three times larger. The move provides the company with an 8,000 square-foot facility for its administrative offices, maintenance repair and overhaul operations and spare parts buildings.
The site is west of Interstate 110 and north of Town and Country Plaza. Aero Sekur, headquartered in Italy, specializes in safety systems and advanced flexible structures for the global aerospace and defense markets. (Post)
There won’t be a lot of jobs associated with the office, seven initially and perhaps twice that as it gears up. But since this region is making a push for more aerospace, any new operation is important and sends a message.
Airports
Three airports in Northwest Florida had increases in their passenger counts in January 2015 compared to January 2014. The newly renamed Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport at Eglin Air Force Base had an 8.56 percent increase. Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport near Panama City had a 5.83 percent increase and Pensacola International Airport had an increase of 4.5 percent. (Post)
Meanwhile, agreements were finalized for United Airlines and Silver Airways to begin service at Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport. United Express started daily service to Houston. Silver Airways is set to kick off service to Orlando and Tampa March 19. (Post)
F-35
The F-35 Joint Program Office has asked Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) to start an initial low-rate production of a new Hand-held Imaging Tool (HIT) that will be able to check the surface of a plane to check its health.
The Air Force currently uses a 1,200-pound piece of equipment and needs two operators and three hours. But AFRL through a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) developed HIT. It's a portable, non-destructive method to inspect an aircraft. It consists of a handheld unit weighing less than seven pounds and an 11-pound backpack that can image 100 percent of an aircraft's surface in 15 minutes.
The test and demonstration was done at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., in late 2014 and led to the culmination of a five-year research effort. So expect to see that device there, since it's home of the F-35 Integrated Training Center. (Post)
-- Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded an $8.2 million modification to a previously awarded contract for the procurement and delivery of electronic components to support low-rate initial production Lot VII F-35 aircraft for the U.S. Air Force, Marine Corps, Navy and international partners. Work will be performed in Fort Worth and is expected to be completed in March 2016.
This contract combines purchases for the Air Force (59.4 percent), Navy (18.7 percent), Marine Corps (12.5 percent), and international partners (9.4 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Post)
-- Pratt and Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Conn., was awarded a $7 million modification to a previously awarded contract for retrofit modifications to the F-135 propulsion system, including production thrust recovery and integrated power package manifold. Work will be performed in Oklahoma City, Okla., and is expected to be completed in December 2016.
This contract combines purchases for the U.S. Air Force (50 percent); the U.S. Navy (49 percent); and the international partners (1 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. The F135 is used in the F-35. (Post)
Contracts
Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., Hurst, Texas, was awarded an $8.4 million modification to a previously awarded contract to exercise an option for delivery of one Bell 407 Analog Helicopter, and preservation and storage of seven aircraft in support of the endurance upgrade of the MQ-8C Fire Scout. Work will be performed in Ozark, Ala., and is expected to be completed in September 2015. Final assembly of Fire Scouts is done at Moss Point, Miss. … L-3 Vertex Aerospace LLC, Madison, Miss., was awarded an $8.8 million modification for F-16 aircraft maintenance for Taiwan. Work will be performed at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., and is expected to be complete by Feb. 29, 2016.
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