FORT WORTH, Texas, Dec. 28, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Lockheed Martin
(NYSE: LMT) delivered the 123rd F-35 aircraft of the year last
week.
Lockheed Martin delivered the 123rd F-35 aircraft of the year last
week.
The 123rd aircraft is an F-35A conventional takeoff and landing
(CTOL) variant, built at the Cameri, Italy, Final Assembly and Checkout (FACO)
facility and delivered to the Italian Air Force. In 2020, 74 F-35s
were delivered to the United
States military, 31 to international partner nations and 18
to Foreign Military Sales customers.
In response to COVID-19 related supplier delays, in May the
initial annual delivery goal was revised from 141 to 117-123
aircraft to strategically avoid surging, which would increase
production-related costs and create future delays and
disruption.
"The F-35 joint enterprise team rapidly responded to the
challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic to continue to deliver the
unmatched combat capability the F-35 brings to the Warfighter,"
said Bill Brotherton, acting vice
president and general manager of the F-35 program. "Achieving this
milestone amid a global pandemic is a testament to the hard work
and dedication of the team and their commitment to our customers'
missions."
COVID-19 Recovery
Lockheed Martin took proactive measures to mitigate COVID-19
supplier impacts and position the program for the fastest possible
recovery by adjusting employee work schedules, maintaining
specialized employee skillsets, and providing accelerated payments
to small and vulnerable suppliers. Lockheed Martin provided
accelerated payments to more than 400 F-35 suppliers in 45 states
and Puerto Rico.
Though COVID-19 will have short-term impacts on production, the
F-35 program continues to work diligently and is on track to meet
the joint government and industry recovery commitments over the
coming years.
Program Maturity and Progress
With more than 600 aircraft operating from 26 bases and ships
around the globe, the F-35 plays a critical role in today's global
security environment. More than 1,200 pilots and 10,000 maintainers
are trained, and the F-35 fleet has surpassed more than 350,000
cumulative flight hours. Nine nations have F-35s operating from a
base on their home soil, nine services have declared Initial
Operational Capability and six services have employed F-35s in
combat operations. The United States Air Force deployed the F-35
for 18 consecutive months from April
2019 until October 2020 in the
Central Command Area of Responsibility with hundreds of weapons
employments in support of U.S. servicemembers and their allies.
The year also included initial fielding of the Operational Data
Integrated Network (ODIN), the follow-on to the Autonomic Logistics
Information System (ALIS), with excellent initial results. The
system will be fully operational in 2022. Mission capable rates for
the aircraft continued to improve in 2020 with rates greater than
70% across the fleet, and even higher for deployed units. The F-35
also proved its value in Joint All-Domain Operations with multiple
exercises that highlighted the aircraft's ability to gather,
interpret and share information with various platforms.
For additional information, visit www.f35.com.
About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda,
Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a
global security and aerospace company that employs approximately
110,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the
research, design, development, manufacture, integration and
sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services.
For additional information, visit our
website: www.lockheedmartin.com.
View original content to download
multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lockheed-martin-celebrates-a-year-of-f-35-successes-301198545.html
SOURCE Lockheed Martin Aeronautics