2016cnc8-9

10 / 132

8 CNC WEST August/September 2016
EXEC H TLINE
Continued on page 122.....
Lockheed Martin Prepares to
Build Another Batch of Trident
Submarine-Launched Ballistic
Missiles
U.S. Navy strategic weapons experts are
preparing to buy another batch of submarine-
launched nuclear ballistic missiles that are
capable of destroying city-sized targets vir-
tually anywhere in the world.
Officials of the U.S. Navy Strategic Systems
Program Office in Washington announced a $21.8
million contract in July to the Lockheed Martin
Space Systems segment in Sunnyvale, Calif.,
for long lead items to support the fiscal 2017
Trident II D5 missile production schedule.
The Trident II D5 is one of the most ad-
vanced submarine-launched atomic missiles in
the world. Each Trident II missile has a range
of 4,000 to 7,000 miles. The Trident II D-5
was first deployed in 1990 and is scheduled to
remain in service until at least 2027.
Long-lead items involve system components
that require the longest time to build, which
could delay overall system production if money
isn’t allocated for production early in the
process.
Lockheed Martin won a potential $1.48 bil-
lion Navy contract for new Trident II (D5)
missiles, D5 life extension development, and
production, and D5 deployed systems support.
Lockheed Martin will do the work in Sunny-
vale, Calif., and should be finished by Sep-
tember 2021.
Boeing Awarded $127M. Deal For
New Air Force One Work
Boeing will begin developing interior, power
and electronic specifications for the next-
generation “Air Force One” under a $127.3
million contract awarded by the US Air Force
on July,15. The award is intended to reduce
the risk of delays and cost overruns before
the USAF commits to full-scale development and
procurement of up to three 747-8s, the Defense
Department says in a contract award bulletin.
Last year, the USAF announced the selec-
tion of the 747-8 to replace a fleet of two
747-200-derived VC-25s, which are commonly
known as “Air Force One” when the US presi-
dent is flying onboard. Both 747-200s will be
32 years old when the 747-8 replacement is
scheduled to be declared initially operational
in 2023.
Bellevue, WA. 8th Graders Win
International Rocketry Challenge
A team of 8th graders from a public middle
school in Washington state has won the Inter-
national Rocketry Challenge in London.
Five students from Odle Middle School in
Bellevue beat out teams from Japan, the United
Kingdom and France to win the July competi-
tion at the Farnborough International Air-
show. The teams designed, built and launched
rockets that had to reach an altitude of 850
feet within 44 to 46 seconds. The rocket had
to carry two raw eggs.
The team, named “Space Potatoes,” repre-
sented the U.S. in the international contest
after beating out more than 780 teams across
the country in this year’s Team America Rock-
etry Challenge. The team was sponsored by
Raytheon Co.
NASA Selects Five Mars Orbiter
Concept Studies
NASA has selected five U.S. aerospace com-
panies (four western region based) to conduct
concept studies for a potential future Mars
orbiter mission. Such a mission would continue
key capabilities including telecommunications
and global high-resolution imaging in support
of the agency’s Journey to Mars.
The companies contracted for these four-
month studies are: The Boeing Company in Hun-
tington Beach, California; Lockheed Martin
Space Systems in Denver; Northrop Grumman
Aerospace Systems in Redondo Beach, Cali-
fornia; Orbital ATK in Dulles, Virginia; and
Space Systems/Loral in Palo Alto, California.
“We’re excited to continue planning for
the next decade of Mars exploration,” said
Geoffrey Yoder, acting associate administra-
tor for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in
Washington.
The concept studies will address how a po-
tential new Mars orbiter mission could best
provide communications, imaging and opera-
tional capabilities. They also will assess
the possibilities for supporting additional