Assembly To Be Shipped To Fort Worth, TX For Aircraft  Integration

The 200th aft fuselage assembly for the F-35 program has been completed by BAE Systems in the U.K.

The aft fuselage, designed for a Conventional Take-Off and Landing variant aircraft, will now be transported to Lockheed Martin’s final assembly facility in Fort Worth, Texas to be fitted to the rest of the aircraft.

"The F-35 is the world's largest single defense program and as the only major partner, the UK has played an important role from the outset," said U.K. Defense secretary Michael Fallon, Speaking at BAE Systems’ F-35 Lightning II facility in Samlesbury.

"These fuselages, built in the North West, make up a significant amount of the manufacturing work on every aircraft, and will be supplied to all nine of the nations involved in the F-35 program.

"That's not only a huge achievement for the British Defense industry on the world stage, but work on this cutting edge aircraft is also boosting the UK economy, supporting thousands of jobs across the country." 

BAE Systems is producing each rear fuselage and vertical and horizontal tails set for the F-35 Lightning II program, a significant proportion of the total manufacturing work on each aircraft. As well as bringing its unrivalled military aircraft expertise to the airframe, BAE Systems is also responsible for various systems on the aircraft including fuel, crew escape and life-support systems, and the integration of the aircraft on to the new Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carrier.

“The completion of the 200th aft fuselage is a significant milestone in this important program for the Company," said Jon Evans, head of F-35 Lightning II Production Delivery for BAE Systems at Samlesbury. “With a potential requirement for more than 3,000 aircraft around the world, the scale of this program is huge and is already making a significant contribution to the UK economy through the work created for 500 UK-based supply chain companies involved in the program.”

Over the next 40 years UK industry will continue to play a vital role in the F-35 Lightning II’s global production, follow-on development and sustainment, bringing strong economic benefits to the country and sustaining thousands of jobs.

Along with manufacturing aircraft sets for each of the three variants, BAE Systems is also responsible for carrier wing tips on the Carrier variant and Nozzle Bay Doors for the Short Take Off and Vertical Landing Variant.

(Image from file)

FMI: www.bae.com