BAE Systems Celebrates Handover of First F-35 STOVL Aft Fuselage

, SAMLESBURY, UK (DefenceTalk): BAE Systems today celebrated the official handover of the first aft fuselage of the F-35 Lightning II short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) variant to its industry partner, Lockheed Martin. This represents a major milestone in the System Development and Demonstration (SDD) phase of the F-35 programme, as progress on manufacturing and assembly is made ahead of the STOVL aircraft's first flight in 2008. 
 
The SDD phase is estimated to be worth more than £1.3 billion to the company. 
 
The STOVL variant is the second of three variants of the F-35 Lightning II and has been identified by the UK Government as the preferred replacement for its Harrier aircraft when it goes out of service. The aft fuselage is the first major airframe component to be delivered by BAE Systems for the STOVL variant and will be followed later this year by the BAE Systems-designed and built vertical and horizontal tails. 
 
The ceremony was attended by BAE Systems employees and key representatives from Lockheed Martin. Tom Fillingham, managing director, F-35 Lightning II, BAE Systems, said: “We bring valuable experience to the F-35 programme due to our rich heritage of STOVL aircraft from the Harrier programme as well as advanced lean manufacturing technology from our facilities in the UK.” 
 
In accepting the BAE Systems F-35 STOVL aft fuselage, Bobby Williams, vice president and F-35 program manager for Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company, explained: “The first STOVL variant of F-35 demonstrates the capabilities that BAE Systems bring to the F-35 programme, and I am pleased that they are an integral part of the F-35 team. Following the successful first flight of the conventional take off and landing (CTOL) variant last December, it is exciting to see the STOVL variant taking shape. I feel honoured to formally accept the aft fuselage for the first aircraft in the STOVL variant and celebrate with the BAE Systems team.” 
 
Tom added: “Focus now turns to the manufacturing and delivery of the next major milestone components, the vertical and horizontal tails for the first STOVL aircraft later this year. The BAE Systems team has already created an industry first with the tails. The structure and carbon skin components – produced for the first time on independent machines, and involving 800 separate holes – proved a “perfect match” when they were trial fitted recently.” 
 
BAE Systems will ship the F-35 Lightning II aft fuselage to Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company in Fort Worth, Texas. It will be joined to the rest of the aircraft structure comprising of the Northrop Grumman built centre fuselage and the Lockheed Martin produced wing and forward fuselage.  
 
BAE Systems is a global defence and aerospace company delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, information technology solutions and customer support services. With 88,000 employees worldwide, BAE Systems' sales exceeded £13.7 billion pounds sterling (US25.4 billion dollars) in 2006.