Navy upping its aircraft goals beyond former defense secretary Mattis' 80% readiness challenge

On the same subject

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  June 9, 2023 | International, C4ISR

  US cyber experts sent to Latin America on ‘hunt-forward’ mission

  “We had our first defend-forward mission, a hunt-forward mission, in SOUTHCOM just recently, which is amazing.”

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  June 12, 2018 | International, Naval

  Lockheed, Austal USA serve up new batch of LCS amid frigate competition

  The littoral combat ship program continues to push ships to the fleet as the program begins to wind down ahead of the Navy's planned transition to a future frigate. In Marinette, Wisconsin, Lockheed and Fincantieri's latest mono-hull LCS, the Sioux City, completed acceptance trials in Lake Michigan, according to May 31 announcement. That ship is preparing to commission in Annapolis, Maryland, in the Fall after some weather and mechanical delays pushed back trials. The Sioux City is the sixth mono-hull LCS. Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama, in May delivered its eighth trimaran LCS, the Tulsa, and the second LCS delivered by the yard this year. The first one, the Manchester, was commissioned May 26. Both yards are still churning on a backlog of LCS. The ships will be coming fast and furious over the next couple of years as Austal, Lockheed and Fincantieri all pursue strategies to secure the contract to build the Navy's future frigate, known as FFG(X). At Marinette, the yard has seven other ships in production as well as one in long-lead procurement. Austal is working on five other LCS and the last three expeditionary fast transport ships of the 12 ordered. Between the two shipyards, there are no fewer than three proposals for the FFG(X). Fincantieri is pushing hard to make FREMM the Navy's next frigate, which would likely be built at Marinette. You can read all about the FREMM below: Lockheed is also likely eyeing Marinette for its proposal for FFG(X), a variant of the Freedom mono-hull LCS, for which it is the prime contractor. Austal is likewise proposing a variant of its trimaran LCS and the stakes for that shipyard are especially high since it is coming to the end of both its programs. Lockheed and Fincantieri are anticipating an order of a Freedom LCS variant multi-mission surface combatant for Saudi Arabia's naval recapitalization. All three of the contractors are among five competing for the FFG(X) contract. Navantia and Huntington Ingalls are the other two. https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2018/06/11/lockheed-austal-usa-serve-up-new-batch-of-lcs-amid-frigate-competition/

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  August 30, 2019 | International, Aerospace

  Lockheed Martin's Expertise In Hypersonic Flight Wins New Army Work

  HUNTSVILLE, Ala., Aug. 30, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- On August 29, the U.S. Army awarded Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) a contract at an estimated value of $347 million as part of a multi-year hypersonic weapons development in support of the Army's focus in long-range precision strike missiles. As the prime contractor for the Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW) systems integration project, the Lockheed Martin-team will develop and integrate a land-based hypersonic strike prototype in partnership with the Army Hypersonic Project Office, part of the Army Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office. The team includes: Dynetics Technical Solutions (DTS), Integration Innovation Inc. (i3), Verity Integrated Systems, Martinez & Turek, and Penta Research. "Lockheed Martin is driving rapid technical development for these national priority programs," said Eric Scherff, vice president for Hypersonic Strike Programs for Lockheed Martin Space. "There are natural synergies with our industry teammates. We believe our relationships offer the Army unmatched expertise and puts us in the best position to deliver this critical capability to the nation. Lockheed Martin is proud to partner with the Army in integrating the common hypersonic glide body and the land-based hypersonic strike weapon system prototype. We are committed to combining the best of what our companies have to offer to deliver on this national priority program." The Army also awarded a contract to DTS at an estimated value of $352 million to produce the first commercially manufactured set of Common-Hypersonic Glide Body (C-HGB) systems. DTS selected Lockheed Martin to support integration and prototyping of this new C-HGB. The C-HGB will be available across military services to provide commonality to air, land and sea platform needs and requirements. "Dynetics Technical Solutions is pleased to partner with Lockheed Martin on this national defense priority. The Common-Hypersonic Glide Body and Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon programs will modernize our national capabilities and will counter the threat from our foreign adversaries. We are looking forward to the progress our teams will make as we deliver this combat capability to the warfighter," said Steve Cook, DTS president. The Army LRHW prototype will leverage the C-HGB and introduce a new class of ultrafast and maneuverable long-range missles with the ability to launch from ground mobile platforms. The LRHW system prototype will provide residual combat capability to soldiers by 2023. Hypersonic strike weapons, capable of flying speeds in excess of Mach 5, are a key aspect of the long-range precision fire modernization effort for the Army and the national security strategy to compete with and outpace potential threats. LRHW program work will be performed at Lockheed Martin's Alabama, Colorado, California and Texas facilities. Lockheed Martin is an established industry leader in the development of hypersonic strike technology and our experience will serve as the cornerstone for hypersonic defense systems. Lockheed Martin's hypersonic strike awards exceed over $2.5 billion across the corporation. We are proud to partner with the Army, Air Force, and Navy on the technology development and demonstration for multiple capabilities that span all hypersonic flight disciplines. For additional information, visit our website: www.lockheedmartin.com About Lockheed Martin Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 105,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. https://news.lockheedmartin.com/2019-08-30-Lockheed-Martins-Expertise-in-Hypersonic-Flight-Wins-New-Army-Work