F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Electronic Warfare Suite 'Ready To Fly'.

NASHUA, N.H. -- BAE Systems today celebrated early delivery of its low-cost, lightweight, Electronic Warfare (EW) suite to Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., for development of the next-generation F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, a multi-role, supersonic, stealth aircraft.

The EW suite, provided

Special guests included Chairman Duncan Hunter of the House Armed Services Committee and Reps. Charles Bass and Jeb Bradley.

"It's truly an honor to represent employees in this district that have delivered a product on-time, under-cost and underweight to such an important project," said Bass.

"The company's slogan 'We Protect Those Who Protect Us' is perfectly embodied by the JSF Team and their accomplishments," said Bradley.

"Since the award selection in 2001, BAE Systems has been focused on developing an affordable lightweight EW suite to be delivered on-time," said Dan Gobel, BAE Systems JSF EW program director. During the System Development and Demonstration phase, BAE Systems has reduced the overall cost of the EW suite by $3 billion in total ownerships costs and reduced the weight of the EW suite by 60 pounds per aircraft.

During a ribbon-cutting ceremony, before 300 JSF team members, at the new Joint Systems Integration Lab at BAE Systems' Canal Street facility in Nashua, Tom Burbage, Lockheed Martin executive vice president and general manager for F-35 Program Integration, said, "This is a key systems integration milestone for the Joint Strike Fighter Program. Early EW integration further underscores the importance of BAE Systems involvement to overall Team JSF success in meeting our customer's cost and schedule requirements."

"We have transitioned from design to the first flyable hardware and software. Our system is now ready to fly," Gobel said.

BAE Systems is now slated to start testing the EW system hardware on Lockheed Martin's Cooperative Avionics Testbed (CATB) aircraft in 2005.

"Early testing means the EW system - including radar warning, electronic support measures, embedded low observable apertures and countermeasures - will be subjected to a longer period in integration. That allows us more leeway in providing the best possible systems to the production aircraft," said Gobel.