UPDATE--New DOD contracts for mistake-jet fixes on F-35 LRIP-2 and LRIP-3

Source U.S. Department of Defense-- FOR RELEASE AT 5 p.m. ET No. 303-12 April 24, 2012

CONTRACTS NAVY             Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded a $68,284,013 modification to the previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) Low Rate Initial Production II contract (N00019-07-C-0097) for changes to the configuration baseline hardware or software resulting from the JSF development effort.  This modification defines the contractor’s responsibility to incorporate government-authorized changes for the U.S. Air Force conventional take-off and landing and the U.S. Marine Corps short take-off vertical landing aircraft and provides funding for such efforts.  Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas, and is expected to span multiple years.  Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  This contract combines purchases for the U.S. Air Force ($37,684,013; 55.2 percent) and the U.S. Navy ($30,600,000; 44.8).  The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.             Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded a $45,900,000 modification to the previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) Low Rate Initial Production III contract (N00019-08-C-0028) for changes to the configuration baseline hardware or software resulting from the JSF development effort.  This modification defines the contractor’s responsibility to incorporate government-authorized changes for the U.S. Marine Corps and United Kingdom short take-off vertical landing aircraft, and provides funding for such efforts.  Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas, and is expected to span multiple years.  Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  This contract combines purchases for the U.S. Navy ($37,500,000; 77.8 percent) and the United Kingdom ($10,200,000; 22.2 percent).  The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

Work on this can start. After the strike.

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UPDATE- From the Fort Worth Star Telegram:

DOD Contract to modify 29 F-35 jets

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics in Fort Worth was awarded two Pentagon contracts Tuesday totaling $114.2 million to modify 29 F-35 jets already built or in the final stages of production. The aircraft were in the second and third contracts, awarded years ago.

Pentagon officials have been saying for months they were displeased with the high cost of modifications needed to complete aircraft ordered as far back as 2007. The work is needed to ready them for flight training and testing.

Under the early F-35 contracts, the government picks up nearly the entire tab for modifications required on the first four lots of aircraft, totaling some 60 planes. The government and Lockheed renegotiated the contract for the fifth production lot to require Lockheed to pay some modification costs.

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