EL SEGUNDO, Calif., Oct. 1, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation's (NYSE:NOC) Integrated Systems sector has selected Dutch firm Stork Aerospace to design, develop and produce more than 20 exterior doors on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter that open and close during the course of a mission. The anticipated contract is expected to be worth approximately $55 million.
Stork Aerospace will produce the doors, which enable mission functions such as in-flight refueling or weapons delivery, during the JSF program's system development and demonstration phase. The company plans to manufacture and deliver all the doors by 2007. Integrated Systems, a principal teammate to JSF prime contractor Lockheed Martin, is responsible for detailed design and integration of the F-35's center fuselage and weapons bay.
"The selection of Stork Aerospace demonstrates Northrop Grumman's commitment to the F-35 program's strategy of incorporating international participation among partner countries," said Steve Briggs, Northrop Grumman vice president and F-35 program manager. "The selection also highlights the potential of the Dutch aerospace industry to leverage its expertise in key defense technologies to make critical contributions to the success of this global program."
The doors on the F-35 are subject to extreme demands during aircraft operation. They must be able to open and close at high speeds and under extreme conditions, even after decades of operation.
Stork will meet these demands using state-of-the-art design and production technologies, and advanced composite materials. The use of composites will help ensure that no deformation occurs during flight. Stork Fokker will perform the work in Hoogeveen and Papendrecht, The Netherlands; Fort Worth, Texas, and El Segundo.
"Stork Fokker's superior engineering and prototype work on the F-35 JSF flight moveable doors adds critical value to this challenging program," said Erick Vink, vice president of Stork Aerospace. "This work also provides a significant advance in high-end aerospace technology for the entire Dutch aerospace industry."
Northrop Grumman's work on the F-35 JSF program is managed by the company's Integrated Systems sector. Three other Northrop Grumman sectors, Electronic Systems, Baltimore; Information Technology, Herndon, Va.; and Space Technology, San Diego, also support the program.
Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems, headquartered in El Segundo, Calif., is a premier aerospace and defense systems integration enterprise with the capabilities to design, develop, produce and support fully missionized integrated systems and subsystems. Integrated Systems delivers best-value solutions, products and services in support of chosen segments within the broad market areas of battlespace awareness, command and control systems and integrated combat systems.
LEARN MORE ABOUT US: Northrop Grumman news releases, product information, photos and video clips are available on the Internet at: http://www.northropgrumman.com. Information specific to the Integrated Systems sector is available at: www.is.northropgrumman.com/index.html