Here are the programs that made the biggest news over the past week:
Navy reviewing LCS replacement options — The Navy is not wasting any time figuring out what it will do now that it has cut 20 ships from the LCS program, as the service is already reviewing the preliminary results of a task force that is looking into the issue, we reported. The task force was create to inform the requirements for the next small surface combatant that will succeed the LCS, but no details on what it will look like are available yet. The new requirements will certainly be of interest to Lockheed Martin and Austal USA, the two builders of the LCS who submitted responses to the Navy, who asked in April for ideas on a design. Huntington Ingalls Industries submitted a hull based on its National Security Cutter, and General Dynamics also responded but didn’t say what it was proposing. Read more LCS analysis >>>
Pentagon loosens reins on F-35 — The F-35 program has been getting over a recent grounding due to engine issues, and last week took a positive step forward as officials loosened some flight restrictions on the aircraft, according to Reuters. The Pentagon is still investigating an engine failure that grounded the entire F-35 fleet recently, but pilots are now allowed to fly the aircraft at 1.6 Mach instead of 0.9 Mach and can take tighter turns at up to 3.2 Gs (up from 3). The program is still smarting from the public relations disaster, which forced the aircraft from making its highly anticipated appearance at the Farnborough International Airshow. Read more F-35 analysis >>>
First of second batch of Chinooks arrives — Boeing has delivered the first of 155 CH-47Fs to the Army under its second multiyear deal with the service, we reported. The $4 billion contract, which includes options for 60 more aircraft, runs trough 2019 and include partners Australia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. This latest variant of the Chinook includes some upgrades, including the ability to rapidly reconfigure for cargo missions. As we noted last month, the government of India is hoping to finalize a deal for CH-47s this year. The program has shown a great deal of stability at this stage of its procurement life, with none of the four committees making any changes to the Chinook’s funding levels in the fiscal 2015 budget and the Army’s five-year outlook remaining relatively constant in the last three budget cycles. This year’s request is for 32 aircraft for $892.5 million. Read more CH-47 analysis >>>
More good news for Excalibur — The Army’s Excalibur Ib precision guided projectile has just hit a major target: full-rate production, according to our report. In addition to being good news domestically, it could also help its prospects on the international market. Excalibur manufacturer Raytheon stated that in recent tests, the projectiles scored direct hits on targets. Congress has given its stamp of approval on the program so far, making no changes to the president’s request for 35.7 million and 416 projectiles in this year’s budget, as they did last year despite in fiscal 2013 docking the program for schedule problems. We noted in may that the program had passed its initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E). Read more Excalibur analysis >>>
