Week in review (9/18 to 9/24)

The long, drawn-out legal battle with Airbus and the European Union on one side and Boeing and the United States on the other took a step towards being resolved with a ruling by the World Trade Organization this week.

WTO ruled Thursday that European governments failed to end billions in unfair state subsidies to Airbus, despite an earlier ruling to remove them. That opens the way for the United States to impose more than $5 billion in annual tariffs against goods and services from the European Union.

But the WTO in a future ruling is expected to find that the United States failed to address concerns about subsides that helped Boeing, in part through tax breaks. That could lead to the EU being able to impose similar tariffs on U.S. exporters.

The Boeing/Airbus court case is part of the larger battle between the two giants over market shares. The combined backlogs of commercial airplanes has risen to almost $1.4 trillion. Airbus builds the hot-selling single-aisle, twin-engine A320 series jetliners in Mobile, Ala., as well as Toulouse, France; Hamburg, Germany; and Tianjin, China. (Post)

In another Airbus-related story closer to home, Spirit Airlines took delivery Monday of its first A321 made in the United States at Mobile's U.S. Manufacturing Facility. On hand for the occasion were executives from Airbus and Spirit Airlines, 140 Spirit Airlines employees, and the 350 Airbus employees.

The $600 million plant, at the Mobile Aeroplex had its ceremonial opening in September 2015 and delivered its first jetliner – to JetBlue – in April 2016. The Spirit aircraft is the 10th delivered so far. Airbus anticipates delivering four planes a month out of Mobile by the end of 2017. (Post)

Across the state line in Pensacola, Fla., the Pensacola City Council approved a final amendment to a lease agreement with VT MAE and approved a $6.3 million loan to enable construction of a maintenance and repair facility to begin.

The project at Pensacola International Airport was delayed after VT MAE requested the planned hangar be enlarged to accommodate larger 757 aircraft. The price went from $37.3 million to $46 million to handle larger aircraft.

The city secured additional money from the state to cover the increase, but won't get it until fiscal year 2018, thus the need for the loan. VT MAE, owned by Singapore Technologies Engineering, has a major facility in Mobile and is expanding into Pensacola. (Post)

Bases

Eglin Air Force Base and Hurlburt Field in Florida and Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., are among the bases in the running to train battlefield airmen. We first told you about this in July, and now the military is doing assessments at each base.

The Air Force wants to consolidate eight locations into "three or four," according to Military.com. The current centers are scattered across seven states. The consolidation is designed to provide improved infrastructure with enhanced aquatic training for combat rescue and other missions. The service is conducting environmental assessment surveys at all eight locations being considered. (Post)

F-35

Lockheed Martin rolled out the first 42 F-35As ordered by the Japan Air Self Defense Forces to replace a nearly 80-strong fleet of McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantoms. The event was attended by about 400 representatives from both countries.

Lockheed is building the first four Japanese jets in Fort Worth, while Mitsubishi Heavy Industries will produce the remaining 38 under license at its Nagoya facility. MHI won the 2011 competition to build the F-35A.

Maintenance training is already underway for the first Japanese Air Defense technicians at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., and the first Japanese pilots will begin training at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., in November. (Post)

Meanwhile, Raytheon Co., Fullerton, Calif., was awarded a $254.6 million contract for the design, development, manufacture, integration, demonstration, and test of the Joint Precision Approach and Landing System.

This contract will utilize and continue development of eight existing engineering development models; and deliver two additional EDMs to support fleet early operational capability requirements for F-35B/C and MQ-25 test and initial operational requirements aboard nuclear aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships.

In addition, this contract will deliver weapons replaceable assemblies, a technical data package, and provide developmental test and operational test support. Work will be performed in Fullerton; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Marlborough, Mass.; and Indianapolis, Ind., and is expected to be completed in September 2022. (Post)

Contracts

United Technologies Corp. - Pratt and Whitney, East Hartford, Conn., was awarded a $10.5 million modification to previously awarded contract for F119 engine sustainment. Work will be performed at multiple locations, including Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., and is expected to be complete by Dec. 31, 2016. … Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., Stratford, Conn., was awarded $232 million for a modification to a previously awarded contract for the procurement of two CH-53K system demonstration test article aircraft. Work will be performed at a variety of locations, including Fort Walton Beach, Fla., and Jackson, Miss. The work is expected to be completed in February 2020. … L-3 Communications Vertex Aerospace LLC, Madison, Miss., was awarded $166.3 million modification to a previously awarded contract to exercise an option for organizational, intermediate, and depot level maintenance and logistics services in support of about 200 T-45 aircraft based at Naval Air Station (NAS) Meridian, Miss.; NAS Kingsville, Texas; NAS Pensacola, Fla.; and NAS Patuxent River, Md. Work will be performed in Kingsville (48 percent); Meridian (44 percent); Pensacola (7 percent); and Patuxent River (1 percent), and is expected to be completed in September 2017. The company also was awarded an estimated $43.5 million modification to exercise the option on a previously awarded contract for support of T-1, T-6, and T-38 undergraduate pilot training. … Jacobs Technology Inc., Fort Walton Beach, Fla., was awarded a $22.6 million modification to a previously awarded contract for Air Operations Center (AOC) interim sustainment services. … Moca Systems Inc., of Niceville, Fla., is among the companies that will share in the award of a $10 million contract for architect and engineering, and cost engineering services to support the Mobile District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Ala., is the contracting activity.

Week in review (9/4 to 9/10)

Over the next couple of weeks, Northwest Florida's Eglin Air Force Base will be the site of some crucial testing for the U.S. military. The sprawling base will host the 2016 edition of Black Dart, a formerly classified counter-drone program.

It gets under way Sunday and will continue until September 23, according to Breaking Defense. The purpose it to test technologies to detect, identify, track and defeat unmanned systems, a growing concern for the military and the public at large.

It's hard to overstate just how important this is. Everyone who pays attention understands the incredible capabilities of drones. We've used them to take out terrorists, but the flip side is that our enemies can use them as well. And what's particularly frightening is that the field of drones includes not only the large ones, like Predators and Global Hawks, but small ones the size of birds or bugs.

Black Dart is being conducted at Eglin this year because of the size of the base and the proximity to the Gulf of Mexico, where testers will have access to ships. Two Aegis destroyers will participate in Black Dart, according to reports. The program is run by the Joint Integrated Air and Missile Defense Organization.

Fifty-five systems were tested and there were more than 100 sorties during last year's Black Dart in California, the 14th iteration of the program, according to National Defense Magazine. It was classified until its 2014 demonstration, when it was opened to the media because organizers wanted the public to know the government is not only aware of the growing threat, but actively working to mitigate it. (Post)

-- Black Dart is not the only drone-related story of interest to the region. Eglin and Tyndall Air Force Base are among four sites being considered to host unmanned MQ-9 Reaper aircraft, a hunter-killer system. The other bases are Vandenberg in California and Shaw in South Carolina.

The Air Force is looking for a base to host a wing of 24 Reapers, built by General Atomics and capable of remote controlled or autonomous operations. The Air Force also is looking at five bases to host mission control operations.

The Air Combat Command is to conduct on-site surveys at the bases, and could selected preferred locations as early as the winter of 2016. Currently the Air Force flies about 60 drone missions per day, but that figure is expected to increase.

More than two years ago the 919th Special Operations Wing welcomed the 2nd Special Operations Squadron, its remotely piloted aircraft unit. The 2nd SOS was formerly located at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev. The unit is at Hurlburt, but none of the aircraft are located here. The move to Hurlburt completed the process of placing AFSOC RPA operations on AFSOC bases. (Post)

Economic development

Eglin is looking for developers with ideas for a 50-acre property in Fort Walton Beach near the Okaloosa County Courthouse. An appraisal found it would be a good location for mixed-use development. Eglin is hosting an Industry Day at 9 a.m. Sept. 28 at the Holiday Inn Resort on Okaloosa Island to provide information about the property with developers, realtors, builders, architects and others.

The project follows the successful development of the 152-room, beachfront Holiday Inn Resort by Gulf Breeze-based Innisfree Hotels on Eglin-owned property in 2014. Innisfree shares some of the revenue with the military. The Holiday Inn Resort was the base's first attempt to partner with private business for development of the unused land and was so successful, Innisfree is building a 175-room Hilton Garden Inn next door. (Post)

Airbus

The first Airbus A321 aircraft built for Spirit Airlines at the Airbus U.S. Manufacturing Facility flew for the first time last week. The jetliner took off from the Mobile Aeroplex at Brookley and had a 3.5-hour test flight. The aircraft will go through a couple more weeks of final production before being delivered to Spirit Airlines. It’s the 10th Airbus jetliner built at the new Mobile assembly line. (Post)

Contracts

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded a $10 million modification to a previously awarded contract to exercise an option to procure additional diminishing manufacturing sources electronic components in support of the F-35. Work will be done in Fort Worth and is expected to be completed in December 2018. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting authority. Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 integrated training center and reprogramming center. … Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz., was awarded a $49.2 million contract to exercise an option on a previously awarded contract for Small Diameter Bomb Increment II Lot 2 production. Contractor will provide SDB II weapons and containers. Work will be done in Tucson and is expected to be complete by Sept. 30, 2018. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. .. Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz., was awarded an $8 million contract for field team support services for Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile development test mission support including test planning, test operations, test reporting, and telemetry analysis. Contractor will provide ground tests, captive flight tests, and live fire tests conducted for developmental purposes up to and including operational test readiness reviews. It also includes management and maintenance of AMRAAM separation test vehicles and other assets used for the test programs. Work will be done at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Utah Test and Training Range, Utah, White Sands Missile Range, N.M., Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, Calif.; Edward Air Force Base, Calif., Nevada Test and Training Range, Nev.; and Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., and is expected to be complete by Sept. 8, 2017. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, is the contracting activity. … L-3 Communications Vertex Aerospace LLC, Madison, Miss., was awarded a $13 million modification to a previously awarded contract to exercise an option for maintenance, repair, and logistics support for the Chief of Naval Air Training aircraft’s intermediate maintenance departments located at the Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., and NAS Corpus Christi, Texas. Support to be provided includes labor, equipment, tools, services, and direct and indirect material. Work will be performed at NAS Pensacola (60 percent); and NAS Corpus Christi (40 percent), and is expected to be completed in September 2017. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

Week in review (8/28 to 9/3)

The explosion this week of a Falcon 9 rocket and loss of the payload was a setback for a company that has been one of the stars of the nation's commercial space industry. The SpaceX rocket exploded on the launch pad at Cape Canaveral Thursday, destroying the rocket and a $200 million communications satellite.

It was the second explosion of a SpaceX rocket in just over a year. In June 2015 a rocket carrying supplies to the International Space Station blew up. The cause was blamed on the failure of a steel struck purchased from a supplier.

The accident Thursday was during the standard pre-launch static fire test around the upper stage oxygen tank. (Story)

Stories involving SpaceX are of high interest to the Gulf Coast region because it's involved in space activities thanks to Stennis Space Center, Miss., and Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. In addition, SpaceX is using Stennis Space Center to develop its next generation Raptor engines.

In another item of interest to this region, a U.S. court backed Leonardo's challenge to the U.S. Army's contract with Airbus Helicopters for 16 more UH-72A Lakota helicopters and has given the Army six months to justify that contract award, re-compete it or drop the acquisition.

The Lakota helicopters are made in Columbus, Miss.

Leonardo challenged the Army's modification late last year of the original 2006 Light Utility Helicopter program contract to permit the purchase of 16 more Lakotas on the grounds that Airbus was a responsible sole source.

Leonardo's AgustaWestland division lost out on the original contract award to Airbus. In 2006 the contract was valued at $43 million for initially eight helicopters, with options for as many as 483 more. The Army to date has received more than 350 UH-72 aircraft. (Story)

In other news of interest to the region during the week:

F-35

Three F-35Bs and 75 personnel from the Marine’s Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron 1 at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., along with 21 members of Edwards' JSF Operational Test Team, completed a 22-day deployment Sept. 1 at Eglin. They were here for complete five AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile and one GBU-12 aerial laser-guided bomb test shots. Eglin is home of the F-35 integrated training center and reprogramming lab. (Post)

-- Lockheed Martin of Fort Worth, Texas, and Pratt and Whitney of East Hartford, Conn., each were awarded two contracts during the week. The contracting activity in all four cases is the Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md.

In one contract, Lockheed Martin was awarded an $18 million modification to a previously awarded advance acquisition contract. This modification provides for long lead time materials, parts, components and effort required to maintain the planned production schedule for one F-35A low-rate initial production (LRIP) Lot 11 aircraft, and two F-35A and one F-35B LRIP Lot 12 aircraft for a non-U.S. Department of Defense participant in the F-35 program. (Post)

The company also was awarded a $28.2 million modification to a previously awarded contract for additional sustainment in support of Low Rate Initial Production Lot 10 F-35 aircraft. Support to be provided includes non-air vehicle spares, support equipment, Autonomic Logistics Information System hardware and software upgrades, supply chain management, full mission simulators and non-recurring engineering services for the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy. (Post)

Pratt and Whitney Military Engines was awarded $38.5 million modification to a previously awarded contract for sustainment program administrative labor in support of the F-35 low-rate initial production Lot IX procurement. This modification provides for program administrative labor in support of F-135 sustainment efforts. (Post)

The company also was awarded a $7.4 million modification to a previously awarded contract. This modification procures advanced spare parts and deployment spare part packages and initial spare 3BSM modules in support of the F-35 for the Marine Corps and Navy. (Post)

Airbus

A JetBlue A320 made history during last week when it made the first commercial flight between the United States and Cuba in more than a half-century. The Airbus jetliner, Flight 387, left Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and landed in the central city of Santa Clara after a 51-minute trip. U.S.-Cuba travel was curtailed during the 55-year-old trade embargo.

The same day, the transportation department announced the carriers selected to operate routes to Havana: Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines and United Airlines. Carriers will serve the Cuban capital from Atlanta, Charlotte, Fort Lauderdale, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York City, Orlando and Tampa. (Post)

Airbus makes A320 series jetliners in Mobile, Ala. JetBlue was the first customer to take delivery of an A321 in April 2016.

Contracts

DRS Training and Control Systems, LLC, Fort Walton Beach, Fla., was awarded a $9.8 million contract to procure overhaul/upgrade of the AH-64 digital captive boresight harmonization kit for a minimum quantity of 25, maximum of 200. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 29, 2021. … Bell-Boeing Joint Project Office, Amarillo, Texas, was awarded a $32.4 million modification to previously issued delivery order placed against a basic ordering agreement. This modification provides for software and hardware upgrades for 28 V-22 flight simulators for the U.S. Marine Corps (19 MV-22) and the U.S. Air Force (9 CV-22). Four percent of the work will be performed in Fort Walton Beach, and the rest at other locations, and is expected to be completed in March 2020. … L-3 Communications Corp. -Systems Field Support, Madison, Miss., was awarded a $19.6 million modification on a previously awarded contract for C-12 contractor logistics support. Work will be performed at a variety of locations worldwide and is expected to be complete by Aug. 31, 2017. … SDVE, LLC, Andalusia, Ala., was awarded a $9.8 million contract for simplified acquisition of base engineering requirements. Contractor will provide simplified acquisition of base engineering requirements contract work including detailed task specifications that encompass most types of real property maintenance, repair, and minor construction work.