Week in review (7/21 to 7/27)

When it comes to economic growth potential, the four states in the Gulf Coast region made the top 10 list of the 15th annual Business Facilities’ report. Alabama is ranked fifth, Florida is seventh, Louisiana eighth, and Mississippi tenth.

In another category, Alabama and Florida make the top 10 of states with the best business climate. Alabama is ranked third and Florida eighth. In workforce training, Louisiana is first, Alabama second, and Florida sixth.

Florida is ranked fourth in best business tax climate, and in the list of top manufacturing states for percentage of the workforce, Alabama is fifth and Mississippi ninth. In tech jobs employment, Florida is fourth, but second for tech jobs growth.

According to this report, the nation’s aerospace leaders are Washington, California, Texas, Kansas, Connecticut, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Ohio and Missouri. Too bad they don't rank portions of four states, like the I-10 corridor.

You can read more about the report at Business Facilities.

In other news of interest to the Gulf Coast during the week:

Contracts – Triton

Northrop Grumman was awarded two contracts during the week for the MQ-4C Triton program.

In one, Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., San Diego, Calif., was awarded a $33.8 million delivery order against a previously issued basic ordering agreement in support of the MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft system. This order procures material kits and retrofit labor to incorporate the Integrated Functional Capability 4.0 configuration into retrofit aircraft and ground segments. Work is expected to be completed in January 2022.

The company also was awarded a $14.2 million modification to a previously awarded contract in support of the MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft system. This modification incorporates integrated functional capability 4.0 into low-rate initial production Lot 2 Aircraft B12. Work is expected to be completed in November 2021. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity for both contracts. Fuselage work on Triton is done in Moss Point, Miss.

Contracts - others

Draeger Inc., Teleford, Pa., was awarded a $9.9 million contract for anesthesia recording and monitoring devices sustainment services in support of Navy, Army, Air Force, and National Capital Region military treatment facilities inside and outside the continental U.S. Among the work locations are Eglin Air Force Base Hospital, Fla. (2%); Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. (2%); and Naval Hospital Pensacola, Fla. (2%). This contract has a five-year period of performance and all work is expected to be completed by July 26, 2024. The Naval Medical Logistics Command, Fort Detrick, Md., is the contracting activity. … United Technologies Corp., Pratt and Whitney Engines, East Hartford, Conn., was awarded a $25 million modification to a previously awarded contract. This modification procures milling machines, fixtures and tooling to increase production capacity for critical F135 components. Work will be performed in East Hartford and is expected to be completed in February 2022. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. F-35s are powered by F135 engines. Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 integrated training center.

Week in review (7/14 to 7/20)

It was 50 years ago today that Apollo 11 touched down on the moon, and hours later Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the surface. Now we are entering an era where space travel is again gaining wider interest.

In the Gulf Coast region, work is being done on NASA’s Space Launch System in East New Orleans, and in nearby Stennis Space Center, Miss., propulsion systems are being tested for NASA and commercial companies. On top of that, newcomer Relativity Space is setting up a rocket factory at SSC, where it’s also testing its own rocket engines.

The moon and planets are beginning to look closer again.

Now for your week in review:

MRO

The U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration is investing $12.25 million in the city of Pensacola to help establish a new aircraft maintenance training facility at Pensacola International Airport (PNS).

The money will be matched by more than $36 million in local and state funds. The new facility, a 175,000 square foot hangar, will be used for commercial and technological aviation and will create 400 jobs.

Mayor Grover Robinson says this is a part of "Project Titan," which will eventually include four hangars, the one already operating, the one announced Thursday and two more at the PNS campus.

The new hangar will be similar to the first, but a significant difference will be the attachment of a 65,000 square-foot support services center.

“The Support Services Center will enclose all of our customer reps’ offices; it will have our engineering areas, it will have our procurement, our logistics management will be there,” said Bill Hafner, president of ST Engineering in Mobile, Ala. (Post)

Military

U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels, announced officers selected for the 2020 air show season.

The selected 2020 officers are F/A-18 demonstration pilots, Marine Corps Maj. Frank Zastoupil, of Kingwood, Texas, an F-35 Lightning II pilot currently assigned to the “Warlords” of Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501, and Navy Lt. Julius Bratton, of Woodlawn, Tenn., an F/A-18 Hornet pilot currently assigned to the “Gladiators” of Strike Fighter Squadron 106.

C-130 pilots chosen are Marine Corps Capt. William Huckeba, of Hoover, Ala., a C-130 Hercules pilot currently assigned to Officer Candidate School Quantico, and Marine Corps Capt. Rick Rose, of Napa, Calif., a C-130 Hercules pilot currently assigned to the “Sumos” of Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 152.

Previously selected to join the 2020 team was Commanding Officer and Flight Leader, Navy Cmdr. Brian Kesselring, of Fargo, N.D., who was most recently the commanding officer of the “Sunliners” of Strike Fighter Squadron 81. The new team members will officially begin their training for the 2020 show season following the Blue Angels Homecoming Air Show at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Nov. 9. (Post)

-- The Air Force chief of staff announced the assignment of Brig. Gen. William G. Holt III, special assistant to the commander, Air Force Special Operations Command, Hurlburt Field, Florida, to director, joint exercise and training, J-7, U.S. Space Command. (Post)

Contracts

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded a $34.7 million contract to develop and deliver an engineering change proposal to enable the production cut-in of the Fuselage Station 425 Bulkhead structural modification required for F-35A and F-35C to allow full-envelope internal carriage of aft heavy weaponry. Work will be performed in Fort Worth and is expected to be completed in July 2022. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 integrated training center. … Lockheed Martin Corp., Orlando, Fla., was awarded a $23.6 million modification to a previously awarded contract for providing a replacement joint air to surface standoff missile (JASSM) anti-jam GPS receiver with a new JASSM Anti-Jam GPS Receiver (JAGR) due to obsolescence. This contract provides replacement for the current JAGR due to obsolescence. Work will be performed at Orlando, Fla., and is expected to be completed by March 31, 2023. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity.

Week in review (7/7 to 7/13)

Despite the rough weather caused by Hurricane Barry, the Blue Angels performed before the crowds Friday and still planned a limited show Saturday afternoon. The storm was reclassified as a Category 1 as it approached the Louisiana coast Saturday morning.

But the system and its impact stretched to the east and west of the storm, causing rough seas and on and off rain at Pensacola Beach, where the Navy flight demonstration team was schedule to perform.

Here’s your week in review:

Airbus

Airbus delivered to Delta Air Lines its 50th A320 series aircraft produced in the Airbus U.S. production facility in Mobile, Ala. This A321 is the first of a total of 20 aircraft being delivered with a blend of sustainable jet fuel over the next year.

The jet fuel is certified compliant with the sustainability requirements of the European Union Renewable Energy Directive (EU RED) and the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC).

Delta is the second U.S customer to have aircraft delivered by Airbus from Mobile using a blend of sustainable fuel. Airbus offers this option to its customers in order to promote a more regular use of sustainable aviation fuels within the industry. (Post)

Unmanned

The Navy declared initial operational capability for the Northrop Grumman MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter on June 28. It clears the way for the unmanned air vehicle to begin fleet operations and training.

The MQ-8C is to deploy aboard the USN’s littoral combat ships in FY2021, and is intended for intelligence, and surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as precision targeting.

The airframe is the commercial Bell 407, with seats and other manned avionics equipment stripped out and replaced with remote controls and extra fuel tanks. Over the next few years, Northrop Grumman plans to deliver 38 MQ-8Cs to the Navy. Final assembly and flight testing of the MQ-8C is done in Moss Point, Miss. (Post)

Contracts

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded two contracts in connection with the F-35 during the week. In one, the company was awarded a $41.3 million modification to a previously awarded order placed against a basic ordering agreement. This modification exercises an option for the design, procurement and integration of flight test instrumentation and data processing solutions for F-35 Lightning II development test aircraft to support the Tech Refresh-3 and the Follow on Modernization Block 4 mission systems configuration. Work will be performed in Fort Worth and is expected to be completed in February 2021. In the other, the company was awarded a $21.3 million modification to a delivery order against a previously issued basic ordering agreement. This modification provides for modification kits, special tooling and installation labor for the modification and retrofit of F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter aircraft for the Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, non-U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) participants, and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas, and is expected to be completed in May 2024. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity for both contracts. Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of an F-35 training center, as well as reprogramming labs.

Week in review (6/30 to 7/6)

I have strong memories of Fourth of July celebrations when I was a kid – the fireworks, the parades, the marching bands, the hot dogs and burgers. It was all great fun, and it’s not until you get older that you really understand what it’s all about.

But even as a kid I got a hint. One memory that stands out is a parade in our town in New York, when my Dad was driving a shiny new Lincoln convertible – it wasn’t ours – from the dealership where he worked. In the back were local dignitaries, waving to everyone. I didn’t know who they were, nor did I care.

For me, all I saw was the driver, my very own dignitary, a World War II veteran who fought for our country then came home to work hard raising a family. Later in the parade there was a group of soldiers from a nearby Army base. I focused on just one of them, the man who was dating and would soon marry my sister.

Yes, you can have an elaborate national celebration, it’s all part of what we do in this country to mark the day we declared independence from Great Britain. But look around you. It’s those who are close to you, those who defended us and those who were defended, who make us understand the significance of the day.

Happy birthday, America. We are one people, and should act like it more often.

Now for your week in review:

Airbus

Airbus Canada Limited Partnership marked its first anniversary on July 1, a year after Airbus became the majority partner in the A220 aircraft program.

Highlights of this first anniversary include orders and commitments signed for more than 230 A220 aircraft, the ground-breaking for a new A220 manufacturing facility in Mobile, Ala., and expansion at the Mirabel manufacturing facility in Canada.

In total, the A220 ends the first year of Airbus leading the program with a firm order book of over 500 aircraft, plus 80 additional commitments announced at this year’s Paris Air Show. (Post)

Space

Mississippi is starting a new economic development effort to lure companies connected to space exploration. The announcement came less than a month after California-based Relativity announced it would build its Terran 1 space rockets using 3D print technology at Stennis Space Center, where it has already been testing rocket engines.

Gov. Phil Bryant announced the Space Initiative early in the week during an event at Infinity Science Center, near Stennis Space Center in coastal Hancock County. SSC is where NASA and many commercial space companies test rocket engines.

The leader of the economic development effort will be Patrick Scheuermann, former head of Stennis Space Center and Marshall Space Flight Center. Bryant also announced formation of a Mississippi National Guard Space Directorate. (Post)

This is not the first effort by Mississippi to leverage technologies at Stennis Space Center. In 1998 Mississippi formally began an effort to create a geospatial technology cluster. It created the Mississippi Space Commerce Initiative, which in 2003 became the Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions.

That was a highly targeted effort, and this one appears to be far more inclusive.

Contracts

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded $348.2 million for a modification to a previously awarded contract. This modification is for production non-recurring, special tooling and special test equipment in support of low-rate initial production Lot 12 F-35 Lightning II aircraft for the Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, non-U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) partners and foreign military sales (FMS) customers. Work will be performed in multiple locations in the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, Norway, the Netherlands, Australia, Denmark, Canada, and Turkey. Work is expected to be completed in August 2022. … The Rockhill Group Inc., Molino, Fla., was awarded a $12.2 million contract for Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) aircrew instruction instructor support required by the 492 Special Operations Wing and operational wings. Work will be performed at Hurlburt Field, Fla.; Duke Field, Fla.; Cannon Air Force Base, N.M.; and Royal Air Force Mildenhall, United Kingdom, and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2019. The 765th Specialized Contracting Flight, Air Force Installation Contracting Center, Hurlburt Field, is the contracting activity.