Here are the programs that made the biggest news over the past week:
$2 billion for MH-60 fleet — A massive $2 billion contract last week for the MH-60 program, as the Navy locked in spares and repair parts for its fleet of Seahawks through 2020. We reported that the Maritime Helicopter Support Company, in a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and Sikorsky, will provide performance-based support for every hour the MH-60s are in the air, which incentivizes the companies to find the most efficient, lowest-cost way to keep the aircraft flying. The contract will keep the MH-60 fleet taken care of for a while when it comes to modifications, repairs, storage, obsolescence management, new hardware, and reliability improvements. Read more MH-60 analysis >>>
Rolls-Royce’s F-35 ‘LiftWorks’ opens its doors — Rolls-Royce has official unveiled its new $10 million repair and component overhaul facility that will focus on the F-35B’s vertical lift capability, according to our report last week. The Indiana plant, which is near other Rolls-Royce facilities in Indianapolis, is known as LiftWorks. It will employ 40 workers and will involve work on the Rolls-Royce LiftSystem that provides vertical lift technology to the F-35B. Read more F-35 analysis >>>
Here comes the C-130 AMP battle — The Pentagon and Congress have been butting heads in recent years of the question of the C-130 Avionics Modernization Program (AMP), with the Pentagon saying it doesn’t want the program — and that battle is bleeding into fiscal 2016, it appears. Air Force Magazine reported that Rep. Jim Bridenstine (R-Okla.) said to Air Force officials during a House Armed Services subcommittee hearing that because of the service’s budget proposal, operations and maintenance accounts would take a 15 percent cut. The Air Force tried to kill AMP two years ago while keeping some elements of it, but Congress banned the Air Force from using C-130 upgrade money unless it was was part of the whole AMP. The full AMP is expected to cost about $2.8 billion over the next five years. Read more C-130 analysis >>>
Navy: We’ll accelerate LCS mods — Navy Secretary Ray Mabus was on Capitol Hill last week to tell Congress that the service expects to speed up modifications to its fleet of Littoral Combat Ships in order to make sure the latest technology is on the ship by 2019, according to a Military.com report. The Navy expects in 2019 to begin buying a new, more survivable LCS variant that will be dubbed a frigate. Those ships will make up the last 20 ships in the original 52-ship LCS buy. The Navy expects to unveil a new acquisition strategy for the LCS by May. Read more LCS analysis >>>