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  February 5, 2020 | International, C4ISR

  L3Harris looks to shed as much as 10 percent of company

  By: Jill Aitoro WASHINGTON — L3Harris Technologies could divest up to 10 percent of the company, according to CEO Bill Brown, as its recent decision to sell its airport security business for $1 billion is seen as the first of more transactions expected to refine the firm's portfolio. L3Harris signed a definitive agreement to sell the business unit to Leidos, according to an announcement Tuesday. The transaction is expected to close in mid-2020, barring any issues tied to regulatory approvals. Proceeds from the divestiture are expected to be used to repurchase shares and offset dilution. The deal is part of a larger strategy to reshape the portfolio, focusing on what Brown described on a call with analysts as “high-margin, high-growth, technology-differentiated businesses where we can win and generate attractive returns.” “Although this is the first and largest transaction we're contemplating, our portfolio-shaping process is ongoing and may ultimately result in 8-10 percent of total company revenue being divested over time,” he said. The company's 2019 revenue of $18.1 billion could translate to as much as $1.8 billion in divestitures. Brown told Defense News in June 2019 — one month before the merger of Harris and L3 Technologies was completed — about plans to divest a “pretty significant” piece of the business in the first six months as a single company. “Anytime you put two companies with two portfolios together and you rethink what strategy you want to accomplish, there's going to be some pieces of the portfolio at the back end of the bus,” Brown said at the time. “We have to look at where we want to put our management time, capital, and [research and development] investment. We can't put it on pieces that might not be as strategic." Brown told analysts that the deal would not impact the company's $3 billion free cash flow target in 2022. That in theory would set up L3Harris for a sizable acquisition down the road, should the company choose to go in that direction. A company spokesman could not comment on the specific defense-nondefense split post divestiture, but L3Harris would presumably see a larger slice of the business focusing on defense opportunities. In the 2019 Defense News Top 100 list of the largest defense companies, Harris and L3 reported 72 percent and 81 percent of revenue as defense-focused, respectively. L3Harris reported $18.1 billion in fiscal 2019 revenue. Once the deal with Leidos closes, the airport security businesses' $500 million in annual revenue would transition off the books. That said, L3Harris is forecasting 5-7 percent revenue growth in 2020 — so it won't be a straight reduction. https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2020/02/04/l3harris-looks-to-shed-as-much-as-10-percent-of-company

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  June 30, 2020 | International, Aerospace

  South Korea to spend $2 billion on aircraft buy

  By: Mike Yeo MELBOURNE, Australia – South Korea is set to acquire more airborne surveillance and intelligence gathering aircraft, as the U.S. ally seeks to bolster its capabilities in both areas. The country's Defense Project Promotion Committee approved last Friday plans to acquire an undisclosed number of airborne early warning and control, or AEW&C aircraft, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration or DAPA. The committee also approved plans to acquire more signals intelligence or SIGINT gathering aircraft. Approximately $1.3 billion has been earmarked for the acquisition of the AEW&C aircraft for entry into service by 2027 while a further $725 million has been set aside for the SIGINT platforms, which are expected to enter service in 2026. The announcement did not disclose the platforms being pursued for either program, but South Korea is almost certain to go with additional Boeing 737 AEW&C aircraft. The Republic of Korea Air Force or ROKAF is already operating four such aircraft, acquired from the United States under the Peace Eye program, since 2012. The Peace Eye 737s are derivatives of Boeing's 737 Next Generation airliners fitted with a distinctive dorsal radar housing containing a Northrop Grumman Multi-Role Electronically Scanned Array or MESA radar. The L-band radar is reportedly capable of simultaneous air and sea search, fighter control and area search, simultaneously tracking 180 targets and conducting 24 intercepts. The DAPA announcement said the acquisition of additional AEW&C aircraft will be to further minimize gaps in South Korea's air defence coverage. South Korea has in recent months publicised the intercept of Chinese and Russian military aircraft entering the Korean Air Defense Identification Zone or KADIZ. The new SIGINT aircraft will be used to replace four older platforms based on the Hawker 800 business jets. DAPA says the new aircraft will be equipped with indigenous systems and will serve alongside two Dassault Falcon 2000 SIGINT aircraft delivered to the ROKAF in 2017. The older Hawker 800 platforms were acquired in 1996 under the Paekdu project and were modified by E-Systems Incorporated for its SIGINT role. The aircraft were delivered in the early 2000s along with four other Hawker 800XPs modified for imagery reconnaissance with synthetic aperture radars and moving target indicators. https://www.defensenews.com/global/asia-pacific/2020/06/29/south-korea-to-spend-2-billion-on-aircraft-buy/

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  October 9, 2024 | International, Aerospace

  Lockheed names new F-35 fighter jet program leader