Lockheed Martin to continue network-centric weapons capabilities work for F-35
Weapons are loaded on an F-35 at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona. (Photo: USAF/Senior Airman Grace Lee)
Lockheed Martin carries on developing network-enabled weapons and electronic-attack capabilities for F-35 operators in the US and allied air forces.
Naval Air Systems Command in the US has issued a $38.97 million contract modification to Lockheed Martin for continued development work on all variants of the F-35 aircraft by October 2024.
The modification increases the scope to develop ‘generic net[work-] enabled weapons and improved electronic attack mechanization capabilities from system functional review to development test’, the DoD announced on 28 July.
Work covers F-35A, F-35B and F-35C aircraft for the USAF as well as the UK RAF and the Australian, Danish, Dutch, Italian and Norwegian air forces.
Interestingly, the contract notice from the DoD also mentioned Canada which does not currently operate the F-35, although it is a competitor platform in the Future Fighter Capability Project (FFCP) to replace a fleet of CF-18 Hornets.
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