Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] has awarded VMETRO Inc. a contract to supply Vortex Data Recording systems to support Lockheed Martins work on the F-35 Lightning II test laboratory. The Data Recording systems are based on VMETROs Vortex VME Open Data Recording platform. The Vortex system will be incorporated into Lockheed Martins instrumentation and test plan for Lightning II. The award value exceeds $660,000. Delivery will occur in 2008.
“The systems Lockheed Martin is developing for the U.S. military and F-35 international partners benefit from optimizing commonality and reducing operations and support costs, which opens the door for innovative technologies from businesses like ours,” said Jim Gerberman, President of VMETRO, Inc. “Lockheed Martin constantly seeks out business innovators with technologies that support its goal of achieving affordability in ongoing development efforts.”
The F-35 Lightning II Program (also known as the Joint Strike Fighter Program) is the Department of Defense’s focal point for defining affordable next-generation strike aircraft weapon systems for the Navy, Air Force, Marines, and our allies. The F-35 is the next generation strike fighter bringing cutting-edge technologies to the battlespace of the future. The aircrafts advanced stealth, integrated avionics, autonomic logistics, propulsion systems and firepower will ensure that the F-35 is the most affordable, lethal, supportable and survivable aircraft ever to be used by so many war fighters across the globe.
The System Development and Demonstration (SDD) phase of the F-35 JSF program started with the signing of the SDD contract in October 2001. First flight occurred in 2006. Delivery of production aircraft is scheduled to begin in 2010. During the SDD phase, 19 aircraft (13 flying test aircraft and 6 ground-test aircraft) will be produced and tested for safety and effectiveness, and to verify the product the Lockheed Martin F-35 team proposed. The JSF program is slated to produce a total of 2,593 aircraft for the United States’ and United Kingdom’s armed forces, and as many as 2,000 additional F-35s for other allied nations.
