onsdag 25. februar 2015

F-35 programoppdatering


AVALON: F-35 programme chief cites slow, steady progress

MELBOURNE
Source: 
06:15 24 Feb 2015
The executive officer of the Lockheed Martin F-35 joint programme 
office is cautiously optimistic that the aircraft is on track to achieve 
key objectives, and that unit costs will continue to fall for the platform.
Speaking to journalists at the biennial Avalon air show, USAF 
Lt Gen Chris Bogdan said that memories of severe delays and 
problems prior to the F-35's "re-baselining" exercise in 
2010-11 continue to overshadow the programme, but much progress 
has been made in finding ways to drive down costs. Crucially, 
the relationship between the US government and key contractors, 
Lockheed and Pratt & Whitney, has improved.
"The programme is seeing slow, steady progress," he says.
Bogdan's comments were widely anticipated among media attending 
the show. In 2013, he used the same venue to lash out at Lockheed 
and Pratt & Whitney, bemoaning what he viewed as the bad 
relationship between the US government and the two main
 contractors in the F-35 programme.
Since then, he says the relationship has improved mainly through a 
better balancing of risk between the government and the two key 
contractors.
Bogdan placed a great deal of emphasis on the jet's affordability. 
He estimates that by 2019 the cost of a single F-35A should will 
be around $80-85 million, which includes the aircraft, its F135 engine, 
inflation, and a profit margin for contractors.
"This is an important number," he says. "If you look across the 
landscape of fighter aircraft, this gets close to what you pay for 
a fourth generation aircraft. If a country has a choice between a 
fourth generation aircraft and a fifth generation aircraft at roughly 
the same price, that is a pretty easy decision in my mind."
There is a strong emphasis on costs. The "blueprint for 
affordability" programme sees the JPO incentivise contractors to 
cut costs related to the aircraft. Bogdan also hopes to include 
Foreign Military Sales (FMS) under a 'block buys' proposal, 
which could help drive economies of scale through the negotiation 
of multi-year contracts for new F-35s, as opposed to annual contracts.
A "cost war room" has been established to identify potential cost
 savings.
One example he gives of a war room success relates to the F-35's 
panel fasteners. Previously, these had a tendency to break, forcing 
maintenance personnel to fish around inside the aircraft for debris. 
This was identified as a waste of time and resources, and led 
to a fastener redesign. More automation is also being used to 
create the fighter's canopy, whereas previously this process relied 
almost entirely on manual labour.
Bogdan points to impressive growth in production numbers in the 
coming years. After the production of 36 F-35s in 2014, 45 will be 
produced in 2015, 61 in 2016, 72 in 2017, 93 in 2018, 102 in 2019, 
and 120 in 2020.
In regard to programme delays, Bogdan admits that they 
continue to be an issue, but says that delays now are registered in 
days and weeks, while previously delays were measured in 
years. Still,the F-35 programme still consumes $185 million per 
month in development costs.
Bogdan also remains confident that the US Marine Corps is 
on track to grant the F-35B initial operating capability this year. 
He adds that discussions with potential overseas customers, 
including Singapore, are deepening.
"The best marketing you can do is to succeed," says Bogdan.

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