Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin F-35B prepares for vertical takeoff and landings

By Darren Quick

15:38 November 17, 2009 PST

The first aircraft in history to combine stealth with short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) capability and supersonic speed has been delivered to the Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., where it will conduct its first hovers and vertical landings. The Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II STOVL stealth fighter will replace U.S. Marine Corps AV-8B STOVL fighters, F/A-18 strike fighters and EA-6B electronic attack aircraft, and will also be used by the United Kingdom’s Royal Air Force and Royal Navy and the Italian Air Force and Navy. Read More

Lockheed Martin rolls-out first F-35C Lightning II Stealth Fighter

By Jeff Salton

07:47 July 30, 2009 PDT

The US Navy is a step closer to taking possession of its first-ever stealth fighter, the F-35C Lightning II. The 5th generation supersonic fighter plane was displayed at the company’s Fort Worth plant in front of top navy personnel this week and will undergo a wide-ranging series of ground tests before its first flight, scheduled for late 2009. Read More

The race to build the world's biggest solar power plant heats up

By David Greig

17:42 May 25, 2009 PDT

The race to build the world’s largest solar power plant continues with Arizona Public Service and Starwood Energy Group Global LLC unveiling plans for a 290-megawatt concentrating solar plant in the Harquahala Valley, 75 miles west of Phoenix. As one of the largest solar plants in the world Starwood Solar I will produce enough electricity to power more than 73,000 homes and is scheduled for completion by 2013. Read More

Lockheed Martin to develop geostationary Solar Powered Airship

By Paul Evans

22:12 April 30, 2009 PDT

May 1, 2009 The idea of replacing very expensive space based satellites and Aircraft mounted Airborne Warning And Control Systems (AWACS) with stationary platforms inside Earth's atmosphere has been floated for decades. Despite the fact that lighter-than-air vehicles or airships that could fulfill this role have been flying for over 300 years, the idea is only now getting off the ground. Lockheed Martin has been chosen by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for a US$400 million contract to to design, build, test and fly a 1:3 scale model of an airship surveillance and telecommunications platform called the High Altitude Airship (HAA). The full scale HAA would measure 240 ft long by 70 ft in diameter, run entirely on solar power and be able to stay aloft for up to 10 years. Read More

The Incredible HULC: Lockheed Martin unveils exoskeleton technology

By David Greig

00:34 March 12, 2009 PDT

The use of an exoskeleton to improve the performance of humans in various situations including the military is a hot topic in the media and leads the imagination to all sorts of possibilities. It has the potential to deliver extraordinary strength and endurance to the wearer possibly changing the face of modern warfare. As part of the further development of exoskeleton technology for military scenarios, Lockheed Martin recently introduced the Human Universal Load Carrier (HULC™) exoskeleton at the Association of the United States’ Army Winter Symposium in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Read More

DAGR video released

By Mike Hanlon

22:19 January 9, 2009 PST

January 10, 2009 A few days ago we wrote about the ongoing success of the DAGR semi-active laser guidance kit that turns dumb 2.75-inch/70mm rockets into guided rockets with accuracy comparable to that of the precision-strike laser-guided HELLFIRE II missile. DAGR is being developed by Lockheed Martin to fill the gap between unguided rockets and the HELLFIRE weapon system by providing a precision-strike, air-to-ground weapon for lightly-armored high-value targets close to civilian assets or friendly forces, while limiting collateral damage. We reported on the first live warhead ground launch test of DAGR in which it maintained a perfect 12-for-12 success rate in contractor-funded flight tests. Here's the video - note how the Rocket penetrates the van and reaches the centre before exploding. Read More

DAGR guidance system running 12 from 12 in tests

By Mike Hanlon

16:10 January 6, 2009 PST

January 7, 2009 Coming soon to somewhere hopefully not near you. DAGR is a semi-active laser guidance kit that adapts to 2.75-inch/70mm rockets to provide guided-rocket performance comparable to that of the precision-strike laser-guided HELLFIRE II missile. DAGR is being developed by Lockheed Martin to fill the gap between unguided rockets and the HELLFIRE weapon system by providing a precision-strike, air-to-ground weapon for lightly-armored high-value targets close to civilian assets or friendly forces, while limiting collateral damage. This week saw the first live warhead ground launch test of DAGR and it maintained a perfect 12-for-12 success rate in contractor-funded flight tests. Conducted at Eglin Air Force Base, the latest test demonstrated DAGR's vehicle penetration and time-delayed fuzing when a DAGR-equipped rocket armed with a live warhead penetrated the side of a stationary vehicle before detonating inside. Read More

F-35 Lightning II breaks sound barrier

By Kyle Sherer

13:30 November 18, 2008 PST

Lockheed Martin has promised that its fifth gen F-35 fighter will allow pilots to “do things that were previously considered impossible, and to think things that were previously unthinkable.” Almost two years after its maiden flight, the F-35 Lightning II has reached another development milestone – supersonic flight. Test pilot Jon Beesley accelerated the F-35 AA-1 to Mach 1.05, with a full internal load of dummy weapons. Read More

Presidential helicopter achieves new milestone

By Kyle Sherer

00:46 September 24, 2008 PDT

The first operational pilot production aircraft in the VH-71 presidential helicopter program has successfully completed its 40-minute maiden flight. The PP-1 is the first of five VH-71 production aircraft that will be tested during phase one of the US$6.1 billion presidential helicopter replacement program. Read More

MAVEN: NASA's post-Phoenix Mars probe

By Kyle Sherer

00:27 September 22, 2008 PDT

After the Phoenix lander has finished scraping away at Martian soil, the MAVEN spacecraft will examine the atmosphere of the red planet. The US$485 million Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN program is the second stage of NASA’s Mars Scout program, following the successful Phoenix mission. The MAVEN craft will study the planet’s atmospheric gases, upper atmosphere, solar wind, ionosphere, planetary corona, solar EUV and SEPS, and investigate past climate change. Read More

Lockheed Martin receives DARPA grant for modular, networked satellite system

By Kyle Sherer

15:36 March 6, 2008 PST

March 7, 2008 Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company has received a $5.7 million contract from DARPA to head a team to compete in Phase 1 of the System F6 space technology program. F6 - meaning Future, Fast, Flexible, Fractioned, Free-Flying Spacecraft United by Information Exchange – is an attempt to construct a networked, module-based alternative to singular, monolithic satellites. Read More

Lockheed Martin receives contract to develop FBI's Next Generation Identification System

By Kyle Sherer

18:39 February 18, 2008 PST

February 19, 2008 Lockheed Martin has received a ten-year, $1 billion contract from the FBI to develop and maintain the Next Generation Identification system, which will expand fingerprint capacity to double the size of its current database, and incorporate palm print, iris, and facial recognition capabilities. The system is also designed to incorporate other biometric modalities that may become important in the future. Read More

Lockheed Martin awarded $194 million for production of Army Tactical Missile System

By Kyle Sherer

17:44 February 11, 2008 PST

February 12, 2008 The US Army has given Lockheed Martin $194 million for the production of the Army Tactical Missile System, which it expects to complete by the second quarter of 2010. The contract includes the ATACMS Quick Reaction Unitary and the Block IA Missiles. Read More

Lockheed Martin successfully tests Warrior Fightability & Training Programme

By Kyle Sherer

17:16 December 6, 2007 PST

December 7, 2007 Lockheed Martin has successfully tested its design for the Warrior Fightability & Lethality Improvement Programme (WFLIP), a new weapons system that uses advanced firing control to allow crews to engage moving targets while traveling. Read More

Lockheed Martin tests guided missile impervious to GPS jamming

By Kyle Sherer

23:03 November 5, 2007 PST

November 6, 2007 Lockheed Martin’s Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) has achieved all its test objectives in Unitary rocket Phase II product qualification test flights at White Sands Missile Range. The tests verified the missile’s ability to perform in a GPS jamming environment at long range – an essential feature for air strikes in close proximity to friendly troops, or with a low collateral damage threshold. Read More

Lockheed Martin tests “Multiple Kill Vehicle” missile fleet defense technology

By Loz Blain

03:45 August 28, 2007 PDT

August 28, 2007 The Cold War might be over, but the underlying strategy that arose with Reagan’s Star Wars missile defense program in the 1980s lives on as the threat of long-range missile attack remains a global concern. Lockheed Martin have just announced successful testing of part of the Missile Defense Agency's “Multiple Kill Vehicle” program designed to be a single-launch platform to neutralize an entire fleet of incoming enemy missiles. Read More

Lockheed Martin achieve autonomous navigation milestone

By Noel McKeegan

July 10, 2007 Lockheed Martin has successfully demonstrated its Multifunction Utility/Logistics and Equipment (MULE) robotic vehicle’s ability to autonomously navigate complex obstacles. The MULE's Engineering Evaluation Unit (EEU) climbed a 30-inch step and bridged a 70-inch gap without operator intervention, relying only on parametric descriptions of the obstacles and the vehicle's self-awareness. This brings the project a step closer to its aim of providing robotic vehicles by 2013 that can keep pace with dismounted soldiers on any terrain whilst providing firepower support, casualty evacuation or enough payload capacity to support two dismounted infantry squads Read More

Gibbs and Lockheed Martin to develop high speed amphibious vehicles for military use

By Mike Hanlon

April 3, 2007 The promise of robust, affordable and extremely practical commercial amphibian vehicles for domestic purposes moved much closer this week with the news that Lockheed Martin and Gibbs Technologies have agreed to develop a family of high speed amphibious vehicles designed specifically for military operations. The resultant vehicles will advance Gibbs technologies and almost certainly increase production to far more cost-efficient levels. The militarized High Speed Amphibians (HSAs) will use technology from a fleet of prototype amphibious vehicles developed by Gibbs Technologies for consumer use, including the Gibbs Aquada, a three-person sports car, Gibbs Humdinga, a four-wheel military vehicle, and Gibbs Quadski, an amphibious all terrain vehicle. Gibbs' technology enables amphibians to travel at speeds over 45 mph on water and over 100 mph on land - and to transition from water-to-land or land-to-water in five seconds. These features provide a much needed capability for military littoral, riverine and special operations. Read More

Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor wins Collier Trophy

By Mike Hanlon

February 10, 2007 The Lockheed Martin-led F-22 Raptor aircraft team is the recipient of the National Aeronautic Association (NAA) 2006 Robert J. Collier Trophy, considered America's most prestigious award for aeronautical and space development. The NAA is the oldest national aviation organization in the United States dedicated to the advancement of the art, sport and science of aviation in the U.S. The Collier Trophy was established in 1911 and is granted each year "for the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America... during the preceding year." The list of previous winners reads as a who’s who of aviation including Orville Wright, Howard Hughes, Chuck Yeager, Scott Crossfield, the crew of Apollo 11, and SpaceShipOne. Team members include Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Pratt & Whitney, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, and BAE Systems. NAA President and CEO David Ivey called the F-22 “a revolution in aeronautics,” and pointed out the fighter’s performance in the 2006 Northern Edge military exercise, saying it “established the unquestionable superiority of the Raptor, a culmination of years of visionary design, rigorous testing, and innovative manufacturing.” Fantastic image gallery Read More

Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Stealth Fighter First Flight

By Mike Hanlon

December 17, 2006 The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II lifted into the skies for the first time on Friday, completing a successful inaugural flight and initiating the most comprehensive flight test program in military aviation history. The stealthy, multi-service F-35 is the most powerful single-engine fighter in history, and is designed to replace the F-16, F/A-18 Hornet, the Harrier and the A-10. The Lightning’s Pratt & Whitney F135 engine is the most powerful engine ever used in a jet fighter, producing 40,000 pounds of thrust. Read More

Lockheed Martin showcases air, water and underwater unmanned vehicles

By Mike Hanlon

August 21, 2006 Lockheed Martin telegraphed its intention to become a significant supplier of unmanned systems technology during a press briefing at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. this week. In showcasing its latest developments in unmanned systems technology and its progress into the future net-enabled environment, it discussed a broad range of unmanned and autonomous technologies, from the recently introduced Polecat and other unmanned aerial systems, to surface vessels such as the Protector (covered earlier this week here) and subsurface prowlers, such as the Sea Talon. During the conference Lockheed VP Frank Murno acknowledged that the company was considering a hybrid version of its F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter – where it could be operated with or without a human pilot as required. Read More

U.S. Navy Completes Initial Testing Of Lockheed Martin Naval Gun

By Mike Hanlon

May 4, 2005 The U.S. Navy has completed initial testing of Lockheed Martin's Millennium Gun as part of its effort to validate and qualify new naval cannon technology for fleet self protection. The gun's capabilities -- including its high rate of fire and air-bursting Advanced Hit Efficiency And Destruction (AHEAD) ammunition – were recently evaluated during two weeks of testing. The Millennium Gun is a multi-mission, close-in weapon system capable of engaging multiple fast-attack surface craft and near-shore land targets in littoral and riverine waters, as well as defending against anti-ship missiles and aircraft. Creating a "wall of lead," the Millennium Gun fires 35-mm ammunition, including the AHEAD round, at 1,000 rounds per minute. Each AHEAD dispenses 152 subprojectiles that form a cone-shaped pattern to destroy a target's control surfaces, seeker and other vital components as it moves through this lethal cloud. Read More

Lockheed Martin's Littoral Combat Ship Unveiled

By Mike Hanlon

The Lockheed Martin-led Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) team has unveiled the latest version of its semi-planing monohull design - the ship is faster, more agile and more manoeuvrable than originally envisioned and maintains its advantages as a low-cost, low-risk design. Read More