FORT WORTH, Texas, Sept. 13, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The F-35
Joint Program Office awarded the Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT)
industry team annualized contracts covering fiscal years
2021-2023 to support operations and sustainment of the global F-35
fleet, supporting mission readiness and further reducing costs.
"These contracts represent more than a 30% reduction in cost per
flying hour from the 2020 annualized contract."
The annual contracts fund critical sustainment activities for
aircraft currently in the fleet and build enterprise capacity to
support the future fleet of more than 3,000 F-35 aircraft. This
includes industry sustainment experts supporting base and depot
maintenance, pilot and maintainer training, and sustaining
engineering for the U.S. and our allies across the globe. It also
covers fleet-wide data analytics and supply chain management for
part repair and replenishment to enhance overall supply
availability for the fleet.
"Together with the F-35 Joint Program Office, we recognize the
critical role the F-35 plays in supporting our customers' global
missions and the need to deliver this capability affordably,"
said Bridget Lauderdale, Lockheed Martin vice president and
general manager of the F-35 program. "These contracts represent
more than a 30% reduction in cost per flying hour from the 2020
annualized contract, and exemplify the trusted partnership and
commitment we share to reduce sustainment costs and increase
availability for this unrivaled 5th generation weapon
system."
The FY2021-2023 contracts represent a planned next step in
further reducing overall operations and support costs for the F-35
program, which are shared between government and industry. Lockheed
Martin has reduced our cost per flight hour by 44% in the past five
years, with a forecasted reduction of an additional 40% in the next
five years. The cost savings in the FY21-23 annualized sustainment
contracts support Lockheed Martin's efforts to realize these goals.
The savings will be achieved through improved cost and velocity in
our supply chain, continued reliability improvements, and greater
manpower efficiencies to provide product support solutions across
the growing, global fleet. We remain committed to partnering
with our customers and teammates to drive F-35 sustainment costs
down.
The contracts also pave the way for a longer-term, Performance
Based Logistics (PBL) agreement for the F-35 program. PBLs are an
industry best practice, facilitating agile sustainment solutions
for the fleet and incentivizing even further affordability and
performance results.
The F-35 Joint Program Office, together with each U.S. service,
international operators and the F-35 industry team, leads F-35
sustainment and the Global Support Solution. The 2021 annualized
sustainment contract will cover industry sustainment activities
through Dec. 31, 2021.
Greater Reliability and Affordability
Program data
shows the F-35's reliability continues to improve as the jet is
approximately twice as reliable as fourth generation fighters. It
also shows maintenance labor hours needed per flight hour are well
within the contractual requirement, while the global fleet is
averaging around 70% mission capable rates. Lockheed Martin has
significantly lowered its share of cost per flight hour over the
last five years, and the broader F-35 team is working across
government and industry to achieve greater affordability.
More than 690 aircraft have been delivered and are operating
from 21 bases around the globe. More than 1,460 pilots and 11,025
maintainers have been trained and the F-35 fleet has surpassed
430,000 cumulative flight hours.
For additional information, visit www.f35.com.
About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda,
Maryland, Lockheed Martin Corporation is a global security
and aerospace company that employs approximately 114,000 people
worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design,
development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced
technology systems, products and services.
Please follow @LMNews on Twitter for the latest
announcements and news across the corporation.
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SOURCE Lockheed Martin Aeronautics