28 juillet 2024 | International, Aérospatial
16 février 2022 | International, Aérospatial
The envisioned radio frequency system antenna is designed to prove capabilities such as locating static or moving targets and denying external surveillance technology.
4 mars 2020 | International, Aérospatial
By Anthony Capaccio Nearly all the engines ordered for the next-generation F-35 jet were delivered late last year as the Pratt & Whitney unit of United Technologies Corp. struggled to solve nagging difficulties with parts and suppliers, according to the Pentagon. About 85% of the engines for the stealthy fighter were delivered late in 2019, the Defense Department's F-35 program office reported, adding that Pratt & Whitney did manage to deliver more engines than required. The tardiness figure was in line with data from 2018, but up from 48% and 58% in 2016 and 2017, respectively. “In general, the monthly schedule performance continues to be impacted by issues with parts and suppliers which the program office is monitoring closely,” the program office said in statement Tuesday. Pratt & Whitney “continues to perform reviews” within its expansive production chain and “has made some progress but more progress is needed to meet the monthly schedule,” it added. Engine delivery issues are just one problem that has plagued the jet's manufacturing ahead of a key decision expected in the next year on whether to move ahead into full-rate production on the $428 billion F-35 program. The fighter has also been flagged for breaking down too often, carrying a 25mm gun that doesn't shoot accurately and having shortages in its supply chain for spare parts from tire assemblies to seats. Some of the problems have since been fixed. Nevertheless, the jet is a key part of a broader weapons modernization effort meant to bolster not just the U.S. military but those of key allies from Poland to Japan. As the sole provider of F-35 engines, Pratt & Whitney and its subcontractors are in line to collect as much as $66 billion of the total jet contract. Congress has approved about $27 billion to date for F-35 engines. But the eventual decision on full-rate production means Pratt & Whitney needs to show it can ramp up production effectively. Overall, 128 of 150 engines delivered last year arrived late, eight arrived on time and 14 came in ahead of schedule, according to the F-35 program office. Of 93 engines in the 11th low-rate production contract bloc, 90 arrived an average of 41 days late. In a statement, the company emphasized that it “exceeded its annual F-35 engine delivery commitment” for 2019. “This represents a 60% year-over-year increase in deliveries. We remain laser-focused on working closely” with the program office and “our supply base to achieving on-time delivery in 2020.” Pratt & Whitney remains under a high-level “Corrective Action Request” that the Defense Contract Management Agency issued in December 2018, citing “poor delivery performance.” The agency said it's evaluating the company's corrective actions and may rescind the CAR by month's end. The company has made improvements in four areas, including deploying “focus teams” to subcontractors for ensuring adequate “critical hardware” and qualifying additional suppliers, DCMA said. Asked if the company was ready for accelerated full-rate engine production, the agency said “as the P&W suppliers demonstrate success in meeting their contract delivery rate the probability of P&W meeting their full-rate production level increases. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-03/nearly-all-the-f-35-jet-engines-ordered-last-year-arrived-late
3 novembre 2020 | International, Terrestre
By: Andrew Chuter LONDON – Britain's Ministry of Defence has taken back management control of its nuclear weapons facilities from an industry-led consortium that has been running the operation for two decades. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said in a statement to parliament that the Atomic Weapons Establishment will become wholly owned by the MoD, with the new arrangement expected to be in place by June 2021. “Under the revised arrangements, AWE plc will become an arms-length body wholly owned by the MoD. It will continue to be managed by a world-leading team and a new board will be appointed by the MoD,” he told lawmakers. Since 1999 AWE has been managed and operated by a Lockheed Martin-led consortium, which also includes Jacobs Engineering and Serco, in a deal which had been expected to run until 2025. The arrangement, won in competition, followed several years of commercial management by Hunting-BRAE. The establishment, based at Aldermaston in southern England, is at the core of British activities toward developing, producing and disassembling nuclear warheads for the Royal Navy's fleet of Trident missile-armed submarines. In February the MoD committed itself to development of a new nuclear warhead to allow the Navy to field an effective deterrent for deployment on the new fleet of Dreadnought-class submarines due to start replacing the existing boats early in the next decade. The MoD owns the AWE sites and facilities. The day-to-day management, operations and the maintenance of Britain's nuclear stockpile are the responsibility of the consortium, which employs the workforce and maintains the nuclear site operating licenses. Wallace said the MoD has been looking at a successor arrangement for the current deal since July last year. “Although the existing arrangements have brought stability to the organization the MoD has concluded that AWE will revert to a direct government ownership model,” said the defence secretary in his statement to parliament. The MoD appears to have left the door open to some degree of commercial involvement in AWE. In his statement Wallace said the new business model will see AWE “continue to draw on private sector specialist support to strengthen capability as well as playing a key role in managing capital projects and contracts.” In a separate statement the defense ministry said removal of the current commercial arrangements would "enhance the MoD's agility in the future management of the UK's nuclear deterrent, whilst also delivering on core MoD objectives and value for money to the taxpayer. “The decision was taken in order to simplify and further strengthen the relationship between AWE and the MoD,” the statement said. AWE Management Limited, the name of the company formed by the consortium to manage and operate the nuclear facilities, only appointed a new chief executive, Alison Atkinson, in May. An industry competition for what is thought to be a three-year transformation program at AWE is already in its early stages. An industry executive who asked not to be named said the MoD had invoked what is known as a “termination of convenience” clause in the contract to prematurely end the deal with the consortium. “It was not performance related. Lockheed Martin and its partners could be due compensation,” said the executive. AWE has not been without its problems though, and, along with the MoD, most recently attracted criticism from the National Audit Office, the government financial watchdog, for its handling of a program known as Mensa to build a facility to assemble and disassemble nuclear weapons. Progress on Mensa has quickened recently but the program is expected to be over six years late and 146 percent over budget, according to an NAO report published in the summer. In a statement, a Lockheed Martin spokesman said the company remains “fully committed to the delivery of the UK's continuous at-sea deterrent. We'll continue to support the UK government, as the Atomic Weapons Establishment transitions to a new operating model and delivers current and future requirements.” https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/11/02/uk-government-to-retake-control-of-its-atomic-weapons-management-from-industry/