JLTV very important to Oshkosh
Filed under: Department of Defense, Federal Budget Process, Northrop Grumman Corp., Oshkosh Truck Corp, Proposal, logistics, production program
Oshkosh Industries has struggled over the last 18 months with the downturn in the economy. The stock is down almost 75% since last September. The slowdown in the world economy, especially the construction industry, has hit the company hard. It has received several US defense contracts for heavy vehicles and MRAPs. It also is teamed with Northrop Grumman on the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) proposal for a new tactical vehicle for the US military. If its team wins that will be a lot of work replacing the ubiquitous HUMVEE used by all four of the US services. That would offset the struggles it has been having with its conventional business lines.
See The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal article for more.
Boeing’s KC-767 Advanced Tanker Video
Last week, we gave you Northrop Grumman’s tanker advertisement. This week, also courtesy of YouTube, we give you a video of Boeing’s KC-767 tanker in action.
Air Mobility Command General pessimistic on tanker
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, Department of Defense, EADS, GAO, Military Aviation, Northrop Grumman Corp., Proposal, Protest, U.S. Air Force, commercial aviation, logistics, production program
Gen Lichte, the commander of AMC, expressed concern with the pace of the KC-45 recompete. He is concerned that not only will there be further delays in the award, but that the loser will then protest the recompete. DoD, taking over the competition from the Air Force, had originally planned for proposal submission in August. At Boeing’s request they have delayed this until 1 October, with a goal of awarding the contract by the end of Calendar Year 2008. Boeing is asking for more time, claiming that the requirements may drive them to bid a different aircraft then the B767 previously proposed. EADS and Northrop Grumman will most likely use a proposal that is mostly like the one that won last time. They even had the first KC-45 under construction.
Business Week has an article here.
Boeing and KC-45 in turmoil
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, Department of Defense, EADS, GAO, Military Aviation, Northrop Grumman Corp., Proposal, Protest, U.S. Air Force, commercial aviation, logistics, production program
After meeting with DoD and the US Air Force to discuss the new tanker RFP due to the GAO upholding their protest, Boeing is now saying that without significantly more time to prepare a proposal they may have to drop out. The new schedule is for the Boeing and Northrop Grumman teams to submit by the end of October with a decision before the new calendar year. Boeing is saying that they may need to bid a larger aircraft then the KC-767 proposed last time due to the fuel capacity and range requirements. A variant of the 777 would have to be used. Boeing supposedly is asking for a more then 180 day delay in the submissions. EADS and Northrop Grumman will most likely submit a tweaked version of their original winning proposal.
For more see The Wichita Business Journal and WashingtonPost.com.
House marks appropriations bill
Filed under: Bell, Boeing, Congress, Contract Awards, EADS, Federal Budget Process, Military Aviation, Northrop Grumman Corp., development program, logistics, production program
The House Appropriations Committee marked the FY09 budget before taking their August recess. See a story here. The Army’s struggling Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) program was marked to delete 13 aircraft, and the Navy’s Presidential Helo was also decremented. The House also ordered that consideration of jobs would be a criteria for the source selection of the KC-45 tanker. Boeing won its protest of the award to Northrop-Grumman and EADS and forced DoD to reconsider the contract. The Senate needs to also mark the bill and then there will be a Conference mark up as well.
Northrop Grumman continues strong performance of defense sector
Northrop Grumman continued the trend of the defense sector by reporting strong earnings and profits. See an article here. There had been some trepidation due to the taking back of the KC-45 contract. The company is able to still win this in December, and if it does it will contribute to further strong earnings and profits.
Congress protests DDG-100 cancellation
Filed under: Congress, Federal Budget Process, General Dynamics, Maine, Massachusetts, Northrop Grumman Corp., Restructuring, U.S. Navy, development program, production program
Recently the US Navy announced that it was not going to continue the DDG-100 program. Two ships are under construction by Northrop-Grumman and General Dynamics. Not unexpectedly the Senators from the affected states, mainly Massachusetts and Maine, have protested. See an article here. The major recent the Navy cites is the continued cost growth of the program. The first two were projected at under $4 B each, but now the estimates are over $5.5 B. Other than the shipbuilders, Raytheon is the most affected company as it was building the combat system of sensors for the ship. The Navy intends to continue production of the DDG-51 class instead. Read more
Air Force awards omnibus support contract
Filed under: Contract Awards, Military Aviation, Northrop Grumman Corp., U.S. Air Force, logistics
The US Air Force awarded an omnibus maintenance contract. Northrop Grumman was one of the twelve companies that qualified for the contract. See the press release here. If all parts of the contract are executed the value could be as much as $10 B. Normally how these contracts work the government, here the Air Force’s depots, will issue task orders which the qualified companies may bid on. There is no guarantee that any work will be awarded or any company will get work.
DARPA to make better binoculars
DARPA invested with Northrop-Grumman to develop smart binoculars. See this short note here. The advanced ones will increase the Field of View (FOV), allowing soldiers and sailors to see more of the area. This should provide quicker detection of possible threats. One would think with the fact that these types of optical systems being in use for centuries there would have been earlier attempts to fix this.
DoD and USAF agree to recompete KC-45 contract
Filed under: Boeing, Department of Defense, EADS, GAO, Military Aviation, Northrop Grumman Corp., Proposal, Protest, U.S. Air Force, development program, logistics, production program
In light of the GAO report the USAF and DoD decided to recompete the new tanker contract. See an article here. This, like the CSAR-X, means that a whole new competition will be held. The Air Force will rewrite the RFP and Boeing and Northrop Grumman will resubmit proposals. Much of the work preparing these will be already done which will speed up the process for the bidders.
JTRS AMF subcontract awarded
Filed under: Contract Awards, IT, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman Corp., development program
Lockheed Martin, who won the next increment of the JTRS AMF, awarded a subcontract to Northrop Grumman to provide technology to support production. See an article here. Earlier this year Lockheed Martin was named the winner of the JTRS AMF radio contract. They now have given Northrop Grumman a subcontract to lead the small airborne radio part of the system.
KC-45 protest summary report released
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, Department of Defense, EADS, GAO, Northrop Grumman Corp., Protest, U.S. Air Force, commercial aviation, development program, logistics
The GAO released a summary of why they upheld the protest by Boeing over the KC-45 award. See an article here. The chief reason was due to the Air Force’s failure to properly apply the criteria for source selection. Of the several reasons listed two ones that stand out is that they gave EADS credit for exceeding a requirement when they should not have, and rather than just noting the risk associated with the Boeing bid the Air Force calculated a dollar figure to overcome that risk. This alone drove up the cost proposal of the Boeing K-767 aircraft. The Air Force technically still does not have to withdraw the award to Northrop Grumman and EADS, but they would be best off reopening the competition.
Market bets on new tanker competition
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, EADS, GAO, Northrop Grumman Corp., Protest, U.S. Air Force, commercial aviation, development program, logistics, production program
EADS shares are down in Europe, and I am sure Northrop Grumman’s will also drop today. See this article. The market is assuming that the Air Force will follow the GAO’s recommendation and reopen the competition. EADS performance has been heavily affected by the delays to the A380 and the scandals with their management. Also they have labor issues as they try to sort out the French-German split and make themselves more efficient. There is still a good chance that EADS will win the new competition.
EADS and Northrop Grumman to start building plant in Mobile
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, EADS, Northrop Grumman Corp., Protest, U.S. Air Force, commercial aviation, logistics
Northrop Grumman has announced that 28 June is the date when they will break ground with EADS on the KC-45 production facility in Mobile, AL. See an article here. The plant will conduct final assembly on the aircraft before they are moved to another Northrop-Grumman plant for militarization. EADS is also talking about using the plant for A-330 cargo freighter production. This means that despite the protest by Boeing the winners feel comfortable enough to continue work on the contract at some risk. It also might mean that even without the KC-45 contract EADS will do some work in Mobile.
Press Release touts KC-45 efficiency
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, EADS, GAO, Northrop Grumman Corp., Press Releases, Protest, U.S. Air Force, commercial aviation, logistics
Northrop Grumman released a press release on the efficiency of their aircraft, strategically called the KC-45, versus the Boeing 767 tanker. It states that using the formula the USAF developed their aircraft more efficiently delivers fuel then the 767. Boeing, claims Northrop Grumman, had to create their own formula to get a favorable result. If you think about it, the ability to carry more fuel to a certain distance will make up for the fact that you burn more gas to get there. If the requirement is 50K of fuel at 1000 nm range then starting with more fuel will give you more fuel at that range, assuming your airplane has similarly efficient engines. The GAO ruling on the protest should be interesting, and cannot come too soon.
Lockheed protests BAMS award
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, Lockheed Martin, Military Aviation, Northrop Grumman Corp., Protest, U.S. Navy, development program
As previously discussed here the US Navy awarded the Broad Aeriel Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) contract to Northrop Grumman. The two losers were Boeing and Lockheed Martin. Now according to this story Lockheed is protesting. Northrop Grumman won with a version of the Global Hawk, Lockheed had proposed a scaled up version of the Predator UAV. It was not surprising that Global Hawk won as the Navy had already tested it, but Lockheed is basing their protest on the word that the Navy found their proposal technically adequate and cheaper then the Northrop one. Read more
Northrop Grumman wins BAMS SD&D contract
Filed under: Australia, Boeing, Contract Awards, Lockheed Martin, Military Aviation, Northrop Grumman Corp., U.S. Navy, development program
As reported yesterday the BAMS DAB was held. The Navy awarded the contract to Northrop Grumman for a version of the Global Hawk long range, large UAV. See a story here. Boeing and Lockheed Martin were the losing bidders. On top of the KC-45 contract this can be seen as a blow to Boeing by Northrop Grumman. Read more
Some Analysis of SAIC’s Common Stock
As a recent GAO report highlighted the Department of Defense invests a great deal in Science, Engineering, Technical and Analysis (SETA) contracts. These contracts, and contractors, are most known as working with the military acquisition offices to provide necessary support. There are also SETA contracts with IT, testing, engineering, safety and pretty much any area that the DoD and Services are involved in. It is a large business employing thousands.
The South celebrates the KC-45
Filed under: Alabama, Boeing, Contract Awards, EADS, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Northrop Grumman Corp., Protest, commercial aviation, development program, logistics
As reported here in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Northrop Grumman continues to point out that the KC-45 contract if it survives the Boeing protest will bring lots of jobs to the US. Especially to the South. Not only is the main plant going to be at Mobile, AL; but this article shows that parts and components will be made at various Northrop plants in Georgia. A lot of the work will also be accomplished in Florida. Read more
Boeing sort of pushing CIA brief on EADS bribery
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, EADS, Federal Budget Process, GAO, Northrop Grumman Corp., Protest, U.S. Air Force, commercial aviation, development program, logistics
According to The Hill Boeing is using its lobbyists to push Members of Congress to receive a briefing from the CIA on “foreign companies” using questionable means in their attempts to win contracts. See the article here. Of note the only two Congressman to talk on the record about this were Tiahart from Kansas, a vocal opponent of the deal and a former Boeing employee and Dicks from Washington. Both have been very supportive of Boeing in their attempt to throw out the KC-45 award to Northrop Grumman and EADS. Obviously Northrop Grumman is upset that Boeing would be stooping to this. The protest result will be announced in early June by the GAO. Congress cannot do anything but de-fund the program, something they are hesitant to do as it is important to the modernization of the Air Force.
One team set for Army’s new integrated air defense command and control contract
Filed under: Boeing, Northrop Grumman Corp., Proposal, U.S. Army, development program, missile defense
Northrop Grumman has organized a team of companies, including Boeing and Lockheed Martin, to bid on the Army’s contract for a new integrated air defense sensor net and command and control contract. See the release here. The contract will be awarded at the end of the fiscal year and will be for a system that takes advantage of new sensors and command and control networks. There is no word on who else plans to bid for this work.
Navy awards contract for CV-65 extended overhaul
Filed under: Contract Awards, Northrop Grumman Corp., U.S. Navy, logistics, production program
Northrop Grumman’s new shipbuilding arm formed after they absorbed Newport News shipbuilding company won a $450 M contract to overhaul the USS Enterprise (CV-65). See the press release here, complete with illustrative photo. The Enterprise is now the oldest US carrier and this seems to be a regular docking period to do periodic maintenance. Newport News shipbuilding in Newport News, VA is were the US has its carriers built now as they have two large graving docks.
Boeing claims USAF cost estimates for KC-45 favored EADS
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, EADS, Northrop Grumman Corp., Protest, U.S. Air Force, commercial aviation, development program, logistics
As part of the source selection for any program the Government does an Independent Cost Estimate (ICE) for the various proposals. If it is for an ACAT ID program the OSD Cost Analysis Improvement Group (CAIG) does it, and if it is ACAT IC then the service’s cost people do it. Boeing is claiming that the ICE for their aircraft was flawed and that the USAF deliberately favored the Northrop Grumman proposal. See the story here. Having been involved in the process of generating these estimates I find it hard to believe that the independent cost analysts would deliberately do this. Read more
KC-45 protest works it course
Filed under: Boeing, Contract Awards, EADS, GAO, Northrop Grumman Corp., Protest, U.S. Air Force, commercial aviation, development program, logistics
This article makes it seem that this is something unique, but it isn’t. The winner has to stop work on the contract as DoD cannot pay them. They can certainly proceed at risk, which some companies do in this situation, but on a contract this size it makes sense not to. The GAO has 100 days to announce its ruling, and that will lead to a three month delay for the Northrop-Grumman/EADS team. With the KC-45 being based on a commercial aircraft, EADS could work on some of them with the idea of selling them to a commercial customer if necessary, or may be planning to bump such a contractor to meet original schedules.
Military Contractors Report Strong Quarterly Earnings
Profits at the aerospace and military contractors Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman climbed in the third quarter on strong sales of jet fighters, submarines and mail-sorting machines, the companies said yesterday.