20 Jun 19. Aircraft manufacturer can use former RAF Coltishall runway. An aircraft builder has been granted permission to bring a former RAF base runway back into use for tests. Swift Aircraft now plans to build 96 two-seater aircraft a year, employing 100 people on production and design, “bringing aviation back to Norfolk”. The firm moved to the former RAF Coltishall site at Scottow Enterprise Park two years ago.
“It’s a fantastic step that we have been striving for since we relocated,” said managing director Dave Stanbridge.
“It’s the last piece in the jigsaw.”
North Norfolk District Council gave the green light to use the runway on Thursday, the decision still has to be rubber-stamped by neighbouring Broadland District Council, because the enterprise park stretches into both districts. The based was used by military aircraft for 60 years up to its closure in 2006.
“The runway is in fantastic condition and was built to military specification so will be durable and no extra work will be needed,” Mr Stanbridge said.
“Our aerobatic composite propeller plane will be the first fully-certified aircraft to be built in Britain for the past 25 years.
“We are aiming for the first flight of an amateur-build aircraft in March and a fully-certified version by September next year.
“It’s going to be a big operation. We have two large hangars and a building.
“We are bringing aviation back to Norfolk and have plans to introduce innovative technology.”
North Norfolk has laid down conditions of no more than eight flights per day between 08:00 and 18:00 on weekdays and no more than four on Saturdays up to 13:00.
There are also restrictions to keep aircraft movements to six minutes and within a set boundary around the enterprise park. (Source: News Now/BBC)
21 Jun 19. STACT Advisory acquires Australian Aerospace. STACT Advisory has announced its acquisition of Australian Aerospace Corporation, adding a suite of aviation consulting, testing and development skills to its existing Australian Industry Capability and professional services offerings.
Formed in 2016, Australian Aerospace Corporation is a specialist designer, creator and developer of aerospace payloads, bespoke unmanned systems and supporting services such as ELPA, HMI and operator training. The company regularly deals with Defence organisations, governments and private clients around the globe. In Australia, it will now begin trading as STACT Aerospace.
“STACT Advisory and Australian Aerospace Corporation Pty Ltd have worked under a teaming arrangement for some time now,” Defence and Federal Government lead, Mike Johnson, said. “This merger is beneficial to everyone as it provides greater time management and efficiencies for all clients, whilst reducing overall costs and administrative duplications to provide quality solutions.”
STACT Advisory specialises in end-to-end solution provision for clients seeking to improve, implement or imagine a better way to achieve their goals, including in Defence capability and supporting systems as well as government policy and lobbying. (Source: Google/www.australiandefence.com.au)
20 Jun 19. IFS and Acumatica to form global cloud ERP powerhouse under EQT ownership. EQT Partners, a leading investment firm with $45B (€40B) of assets under management, has announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire cloud-native enterprise software provider Acumatica through an investment vehicle owned by the same holding company that holds IFS AB (Industrial and Financial Systems). To further reinforce this coalition, following the closing of the transaction Jonas Persson will serve as chairman for both companies. IFS, the global enterprise applications company, and Acumatica, the world’s fastest-growing Cloud ERP provider, will serve growth industries such as manufacturing, distribution, construction, service, energy and A&D, while competing directly with SAP, Oracle, Microsoft, Infor, and Sage among others.
“I closely evaluated IFS and Acumatica for The IDC MarketScape: Worldwide SaaS and Cloud-Enabled Operational ERP Applications 2019 Vendor Assessment,” said Mickey North Rizza, Program Vice President Enterprise Applications, IDC. “Each company was identified as a Major Player in the study, but for different reasons, and together they will truly complement one another. IFS can bolster Acumatica’s ability to globalise and expand in key industries, while Acumatica can support IFS with increased functionality in business intelligence, analytics, and extensive experience of providing a true born-in-the-cloud ERP software-as-a-service offering.”
“This collaboration is great news for both organisations, our customers, partners, and employees,” said IFS CEO Darren Roos, who will assume a position on Acumatica’s board of directors. “EQT has brought together two businesses that will enjoy the key benefits of a partnership in the growing cloud enterprise applications market. IFS and Acumatica can benefit from one another’s resources, capabilities, and strategies, but still enjoy full autonomy and rapid growth trajectories while avoiding disruptions to business operations or brand equity. Acumatica’s cloud-native architecture and operations are absolutely cutting edge, as is its commitment to partners and customers. I ultimately see this as two allies to cover the market from end to end, with combined strength to take market share.”
“IFS is an admirable company in the ERP market who shares our belief in customer satisfaction,” said Jon Roskill, CEO, Acumatica. “We could not have asked for a better match of technologies, strategies, and cultures. IFS and Acumatica both stand for customer satisfaction and choice, providing public, private, and hybrid cloud options as well as modern licensing and rich independent software vendor (ISV) ecosystems. Acumatica’s customer-friendly licensing and industry-leading partner programmes will not change, and our award-winning support will only get better. Combined with the proficiencies of IFS, Acumatica is positioned to expand into new markets and offer true global support for our rapidly expanding international customers.”
The closing of the transaction is subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
The new global entity is ultimately designed to meet a growing range of customer requirements. Both IFS and Acumatica understand that businesses are becoming increasingly global, regardless of size or industry. To scale and compete, customers need a network of resources that will support business operations wherever they, their business partners, and customers may be. To address these needs the two companies will tap into one another’s ISV, reseller and systems integrator communities, cross-pollinate technical resources and roadmaps, and implement best practices across services and support to enable efficiencies of scale and rapid growth that are mutually beneficial. Both companies are currently adopting artificial intelligence and machine learning features into their respective products and expect to achieve early success in that area.
20 Jun 19. Harris Corp, L3 Technologies win U.S. antitrust approval for merger. Military communication equipment providers Harris Corp and L3 Technologies Inc have won U.S. antitrust approval for their merger, the Justice Department said on Thursday.
Increased defense spending under U.S. President Donald Trump and the Republican-led Congress is driving contractors to pursue mergers so they have more scale to bid on bigger projects, spanning everything from upgrading computer systems to space exploration.
The all-stock merger will create the sixth-largest U.S. defense contractor, with a market value of $34bn at the time it was announced in October 2018. (Source: Reuters)
19 Jun 19. Elbit eyes acquisition opportunities from Raytheon-UTC deal. Israel-based Elbit Systems on Wednesday said it would keep an eye out for possible acquisitions if the proposed merger of U.S. aerospace companies Raytheon Co and United Technologies Corp triggers certain divestments.
“We could have several opportunities coming from that kind of merger,” Ran Kril, executive vice president for International Marketing & Business Development, told Reuters at the Paris Airshow.
Kril said Elbit was committed to expanding in the United States, and would keep a close eye on any possible divestments ordered by U.S. authorities reviewing the proposed merger.
He said Elbit expected to wrap up the purchase of the night vision business of Harris Corp in the autumn. Antitrust authorities had ordered the sale of that business as a condition for approving Harris’s merger with L3 Technologies.
“We’ve decided to grow in America and after the Harris acquisition, we will always find opportunities to expand our portfolio and our presence in the U.S.,” Kril said. (Source: Reuters)
17 Jun 19. L3, Harris to divest ‘significant’ portion of business post merger. The combined entity of L3 Harris Technologies will divest a significant piece of business, likely in the first six months after the merger closes, CEOs from both companies said during an interview with Defense News ahead of the Paris Air Show. The merger, which is expected to close within weeks, will create a company with about $18bn in revenue.
“Anytime you put two companies with two portfolios together and you rethink what strategy you want to accomplish, there’s going to be some pieces of the portfolio at the back end of the bus,” Harris CEO Bill Brown said. “We have to look at where we want to put our management time, capital, and [research and development] investment. We can’t put it on pieces that might not be as strategic.”
“We’ll spin some things off or sell some things without a doubt,” he added. “We haven’t decided what that is, but it’s going to be an important step in the first six months post close. It will be pretty significant,” with business divested either in small pieces or grouped together as a larger sale or spinoff.
Both L3 Technologies and Harris Corp. divested businesses prior to the merger announcement last fall. The former closed the sale of a trio of businesses — aviation logistics and supply chain management company Vertex; rotary aircraft component provider Crestview Aerospace; and engineering services and logistics company TCS — in the middle of 2018 for $540m in cash.
And in a $350m deal, Harris sold to Israel’s Elbit Systems its night vision business — the one area of overlap between Harris and L3 that could have perhaps raised eyebrows from a competitive standpoint. Harris also sold its information technology services unit for $690m in 2017.
“Both of us having divested our services businesses well before this was signed gives us a head start,” L3 CEO Chris Kubasik said. “If we had our old portfolio and [Harris] had its old portfolio, the first year and a half would’ve been spent getting rid of [those assets]. That made this more attractive.”
However, both executives also pointed to synergies that could make the combined company — what Brown described as a C4ISR powerhouse — more competitive. L3’s capability in multifunction phased array can mean development of a single, open architecture to support radar, communications and electronic warfare. Signals intelligence experience from L3 can also enhance Harris’ work in the space domain with small satellites, increasing onboard processing capabilities. And with the acquisition of Exelis, Harris was able to develop a small-footprint EW platform — the size of a deck of cards — which can function well on the decoys and unmanned vehicles that L3 develops.
At the same time, the newly merged company plans to invest 4 percent of revenue in independent research and development, or IRAD, focusing on three areas: actionable intelligence, war-fighter effectiveness and spectrum superiority.
Of course, plans to divest does mean even more mergers and acquisitions in a market that has seen a recent surge in deals. Beyond the L3-Harris merger, United Technologies completed the acquisition of Rockwell Collins in November, only to announce earlier this month plans to merge with Raytheon to form a company with an estimated $74bn in revenue. That deal will presumably lead to more M&A activity among defense companies as UTC and Raytheon begin their own portfolio-shaping post merger.
The two mega deals have some similarities.
“You’ve got [in L3 Harris Technologies] a technology-based company that can spend a lot of money on IRAD, focus on bigger bets, bring our rates down,” Brown said. “It makes these system more affordable. That’s behind what we’re trying to do; and if I listen to what UTC and Raytheon are talking about, it has the same thread.”
Brown expressed limited concern about the combined Raytheon-UTC creating a new, more direct competitor, saying there are pieces of both companies that L3 and Harris have partnered with and competed against, “but they’re not our biggest competitors.”
“It’s going to shift. Things are going to change,” he added. “Will there be places where we’ll be competing more often? It’s possible. But it also opens opportunities.”
Harris’ fiscal year closes at the end of June, and Brown hopes to see the merger completed soon after. Final negotiations with the U.S. departments of Justice and Defense have involved assurances of firewalls between teams competing for the Navy’s Next Generation Jammer program, he said, which counts L3 as a prime and Harris as a subcontractor to Northrop Grumman. (Source: Defense News)
10 Jun 19. Extra Funding For Intelsat and Eutelsat. As journalist Chris Forrester is reporting at Advanced Television, here must have been something in the air for two satellite giants to tap the bond markets for extra funding on the same day, June 6th. Intelsat raised a total of $400m (priced at 9.75 percent, and due for repayment in 2025) which was $100m more than they had announced earlier. Intelsat will use the cash for “working capital” and general corporate purposes. Meanwhile, Eutelsat issued an 8-year Eurobond valued at €600 m, and which will be used to pay down existing debt.
However, there’s a huge difference in the interest rate costs. Eutelsat’s interest rate is just 2.25 per cent (and the debt is due for repayment in July 2027). Eutelsat is also to benefit by using the cash to repay existing debt and will save some €10 m annually in interest payments.
Eutelsat says it has taken advantage of the current competitive market environment to raise long-term financing with a 8-year maturity on attractive terms. “The transaction was well received by a diversified investor base, demonstrating the market’s confidence in Eutelsat’s long-term business model,” said the operator. (Source: Satnews)
17 Jun 19. Boeing today announced a USD 1m investment in Brazil’s efforts to establish a sustainable aviation fuel industry. The investment will focus on initiatives that maximize social, economic and environmental benefits to local communities engaged in the development of feedstock that can be used to produce sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). In 2018, the company provided an additional USD 1m to the industry’s efforts in Brazil.
“Brazil is a biofuel powerhouse and we believe this leadership can translate into benefits for small farmers and communities at the forefront of the multi-feedstock supply chain supporting biojet fuel production in the country,” said Marc Allen, senior vice president of Boeing and president of Embraer Partnership & Group Operations.
Boeing will collaborate with long-time partners World Wide Fund for Nature and the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB) to identify small communities of farmers in Brazil with the most promising potential to provide biomass for SAF production. The producers will then be certified using sustainability indicators that drive social benefits such as income generation, solid labor practices and food security. Groups of small farmers that produce sugarcane and macaúba oil in southeast Brazil have already been certified by RSB in recent years, with Boeing’s financial support.
In 2013, both WWF and RSB were stakeholders in the development of Flightpath to Aviation. This detailed report, led by Boeing, Embraer and the Sao Paulo State Research Foundation (FAPESP), outlined the unique opportunities and challenges of creating a cost-effective, bio-derived, and sustainable jet-fuel production and distribution industry in Brazil.
This latest investment builds on Boeing’s long-standing commitment to supporting and developing Brazil’s aviation and aerospace ecosystem through education and training programs, research and development initiatives and industry partnerships.
“Over the past 10 years, Boeing has invested more than USD 2m in community projects in Brazil,” said Allen. “Brazil is a leader in the global aerospace industry and Boeing is committed to working with our local partners to ensure it remains at the forefront of innovation for generations to come.”
Building the next generation of aviation and aerospace talent is a key focus for Boeing’s community investment around the world. The company expects to make an announcement about further investment in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education in Brazil in the coming weeks.
17 Jun 19. L3 Technologies (NYSE:LLL) announced today that its WESCAM business continues to make history as it moves through its second quarter of 2019. Its first quarter of the year ended with record-high orders of more than $120m in contracts for its MX™-Series electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensors, mission system solutions and inservice support. This order milestone complements its 2018 landmark year-end, where the company received over $500m in orders – making it the largest year in WESCAM’s history. “Our ISR Systems segment has done an exceptional job at growing its business by fostering innovation and facilitating collaboration across the L3 enterprise,” said Christopher E. Kubasik, L3’s Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President. “Our industry-leading technologies and mission system solutions enable L3 to help solve the defense and security challenges of our customers in a competitive and extremely agile way.” “This record-high performance illustrates our commitment to providing the innovative and timesensitive technology needed to meet the requirements of today’s warfighter,” said Jeff Miller, L3’s Senior Vice President and President of its ISR Systems business segment. “With our exceptional program execution, industry-leading customer support and targeted strategy of disciplined growth, we are excited to announce that we captured half a billion dollars in orders for the first time in our history.” L3 WESCAM continues to experience strong double-digit growth year-over-year, driven by key wins across air, land and maritime domains. It has experienced an increased demand for EO/IR turrets used on unmanned aircraft systems in the form of UAS and aerostats. Unmanned system orders contributing to the record growth included one from DrabPol Automotive in Poland to provide 47 MX™-8 EO/IR systems for installation on a new fleet of tactical E-310 Orlik UAVs operated by the Polish Army. The company was awarded an indefinitedelivery/indefinite-quantity (ID/IQ) contract valued at up to $454m from the U.S. Army for its MX™-10D. The sensor suite will operate from the Army’s Tactical Unmanned Air Systems Shadow UAV (RQ-7Bv2). L3 Achieves Record-High ISR Sensors Orders Page 2 WESCAM has delivered more than 4,600 MX systems globally. These systems are installed on over 210 platforms across air, land and maritime domains, and service more than 400 customers in over 85 countries. Continuing to build its global in-service support network, earlier this year the company announced a new Korean WESCAM Authorized Service Center for customers located in South Korea and the surrounding region. This facility, along with L3’s 13 other centers, will maintain L3’s MXSeries EO/IR imaging turrets with regional 24/7 support. With headquarters in New York City and approximately 31,000
17 Jun 19. L3 Technologies has integrated its Commercial Aviation Solutions (CAS) and Security & Detection Systems (SDS) sectors to streamline its product and services portfolio, providing airlines and airport security operators a single channel for evaluating and purchasing critical aviation and support systems. Effective immediately, the company’s SDS and MacDonald Humfrey (MacH) businesses are part of L3 Commercial Aviation.
“Together, Commercial Aviation and Security & Detection Systems bring a unique set of capabilities to our customers worldwide, truly meeting their curb to cockpit requirements,” said Alan Crawford, President of L3 Commercial Aviation. “The integration of these units will drive greater organizational and market alignment while increasing efficiencies, accelerating growth and adding customer value. As a single provider of diverse, critical aviation and airport security systems, L3 is transforming the way we do business, which will benefit our customers.”
L3’s Security & Detection Systems is a leading supplier serving the aviation, transportation, government and critical infrastructure markets. L3 MacH provides turnkey system solutions in the automation of baggage handling and installation of airport security systems around the globe. The integration combines those businesses with L3’s full suite of services in commercial aviation, including the development and management of next-generation avionics and pilot training solutions.
This integration is the latest evolution of L3’s offering in commercial aviation and a key component of its growth strategy, enabling further synergies associated with increased scale, market adjacency and common customers. The integration also will leverage the strategic use of data across the business’s services, creating a unique value proposition for customers.
17 Jun 19. Political risks hamper BAE’s battle to revive share price. Fomer chief says defence group should expand in US to reduce Saudi exposure. When BAE Systems chairman Roger Carr met US president Donald Trump in London this month it underlined the importance of the American market to the British defence group after its share price was hit by domestic political uncertainties. As the UK’s biggest defence company and a key supplier to the Pentagon, BAE is one of a handful of companies with genuine clout on both sides of the Atlantic. Its British factories build the rear fuselage for the US-led F-35 fighter jet programme and its American operations make amphibious assault vehicles for the marines. BAE has orders worth more than £48bn on its books and its dividend yield of 4.6 per cent is secure. Yet its share price has fallen 25 per cent over the past 12 months. At 485p, it is also down from the all-time peak of 668p reached in the spring of 2017. As the aerospace industry prepares to kick off its annual get-together at the Paris Air Show on Monday, it has been electrified by the recent news of United Technologies’ plan to merge with Raytheon to create a $120bn all-American giant. The UTC-Raytheon deal has refocused industry attention on which other defence combinations could make sense on this side of the Atlantic, including on BAE. One former BAE chief executive thinks it is time for the British company to be bold. Mike Turner, who ran BAE from 2002 to 2008, said more drastic action will be needed in the longer-term to deliver growth, in part to reduce the company’s reliance on its deals in Saudi Arabia. Business with the kingdom generated 36 per cent of BAE’s “air sector” sales of £6.7bn last year. The answer, said Mr Turner, lies in the US. BAE, he argued, needs to keep growing there both through “acquisition and organically”.
“The day will inevitably come when the Saudi business ends,” he added. BAE’s exposure to the Saudi market is already one of the external factors weighing on its stock. There are concerns over the state of BAE’s biggest export contract, the sale of 72 Eurofighter Typhoon jets to Saudi Arabia, following the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi last year. BAE has warned that its ability to support the jets in the kingdom — a business that is worth £2.5bn annually — could be at risk. Investors have also been jittery over the possibility of a Labour government led by Jeremy Corbyn, which could seriously disrupt the company that builds the UK’s nuclear submarines. Mr Corbyn has said he can see no scenario where he would use Britain’s nuclear deterrent. Analysts at Citigroup in April said a Corbyn-led government could put the “Saudi business and Dreadnought (nuclear submarines) at risk, which we estimate could reduce fair value by 180p” — although they added that much of that downside was already factored in.
Recommended Airbus SE Airbus prepares to steal march on Boeing with long-range aircraft BAE has made delivering on its order book, paying a solid dividend and reducing its pension deficit key priorities. But the lacklustre share price has raised questions over what else it could do to boost performance rather than pursue, in the words of one industry consultant, a strategy that is “operations-plus”. Robert Thomson, partner at consultancy Roland Berger, points out there may be merit in having a more balanced portfolio between defence and aerospace given the higher growth in civil markets. An attempted merger between BAE and what was then EADS, the parent of Airbus, in 2012 to create a European aerospace and defence champion foundered among strong opposition from government shareholders. Sandy Morris, analyst at Jefferies, suggested in a note that the UTC-Raytheon combination signalled that investors were “agnostic” about the relative outlooks for aerospace and defence, something that could bode well for a potential BAE-Airbus combination over the longer-term.
Demerging BAE’s US business into a standalone entity is another scenario some analysts talk about. One of BAE’s immediate challenges, however, is that despite generating cash its pension commitments mean it has little funding to spare for significant acquisitions for the next two to three years. One person familiar with BAE’s thinking also points out that what was needed in recent years was a focus on bringing in orders — something that it has done under the leadership of Charles Woodburn. “There was a risk of not having the volume the company needed in the business,” said the person. Mr Woodburn has focused much of his attention on the operational performance of the group since taking the helm in July 2017, promising “evolution” rather than “revolution”. He has restructured the group, abolishing country-based business units in favour of three streamlined divisions: air, land and sea. Mr Woodburn has also tried to sharpen the group’s focus on new technologies by appointing a chief technology officer to the executive board. Nigel Whitehead, the head of UK programmes, has taken on that role.
Despite the recent strong order wins — notably a multibillion-pound win for frigates in Australia and the confirmation of an order for more Eurofighter Typhoon jets from Qatar — there have been operational hiccups. In February BAE said its £635m contract to build five offshore patrol vehicles for the Royal Navy would slide to a £47m loss due to quality issues at its yards. It also warned that it would make lower profits than expected on its part in the construction of Britain’s two new aircraft carriers. BAE said it had a “clear and consistent strategy which is delivering results and growth”, adding that growth is “underpinned in the medium term by our record defence order backlog and an evolving pipeline of opportunities”.
Executives say there are prospects for growth. At a recent investor day for its air sector division, BAE talked up the prospects of potential future orders for Typhoon from Germany and Spain, even if a second Saudi order is taking time to finalise. A ramp-up in production of the F-35 programme in which BAE holds a 15 per cent stake should boost volumes, while its electronic systems division also promises growth. In the UK, BAE’s shipyards are busy building the Type 26 ships and are committed to very long-term programmes such as Dreadnought, which will replace the Vanguard submarines that carry the UK’s nuclear deterrent. “It’s worth pointing out that the relationship with government and the Ministry of Defence has improved significantly under Carr and Woodburn,” said the industry executive. Despite the recent sluggish share price performance, the consensus among analysts is for BAE to outperform. Mr Morris at Jefferies points out that the rest of the UK defence sector is suffering a similar malaise. “BAE is in a particular pickle at the moment as it is a UK-short until we get a general election,” said Mr Morris. The company, he argued, is going in the right direction — even if it is not electrifying today. “We are a buyer because you can see in the order book that there are sales to come.” (Source: FT.com)
14 Jun 19. Fincantieri and Naval Group sign a joint venture agreement. The “Poseidon” project takes shape. Following the announcement made on 23 October 2018, today Fincantieri and Naval Group signed in Rome the Alliance Cooperation Agreement, which sets out the operational terms for the incorporation of a 50/50 owned joint venture. The agreement, which follows the approval by the Boards of Directors of the two companies, embodies the contents of the “Poseidon” project and paves the way towards a broader alliance aimed at reinforcing their military naval cooperation and creating a more efficient and competitive European shipbuilding industry.
The agreement has been signed by the CEOs of the two companies, Giuseppe Bono and Hervé Guillou, on board of the frigate “Federico Martinengo”, moored at the Naval Base of the Italian Navy in La Spezia. The vessel is part of the Italian-French FREMM program, which underlines the soundness of the twenty-year collaboration between the two countries, their industries and the national navies.
The incorporation of the JV, expected in the coming months and in any case before the end of the year, will be subject to customary conditions for this kind of transactions and to obtaining the necessary authorizations from the relevant authorities.
Through the joint venture, Fincantieri and Naval Group will:
– share best practices between the two companies;
– jointly conduct selected Research and Development activities;
– optimize procurement processes;
– jointly prepare offers for binational programs and export markets.
Based on the agreement the company will be headquartered in Genoa with a subsidiary in Ollioules, France. The governance of the JV, as regulated in a shareholders’ agreement, envisages a Board of Directors of 6 members, 3 appointed by each company. For the first three-year term, Fincantieri will appoint the Chairman and the Chief Operational Officer, while Naval Group will appoint the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer.
Underlining the strategic value attributed by Fincantieri and Naval Group to this operation, Members of the Board will include Giuseppe Bono, appointed Chairman of the JV, and Hervé Guillou.
The Alliance represents a great opportunity for both groups and their ecosystems to enhance their ability to better serve the French and Italian navies, to capture new export contracts, to develop new technologies and, ultimately, to improve the competitiveness of the naval sectors of both countries.
On the sidelines of the signing Giuseppe Bono and Hervé Guillou stated: “We are very satisfied with the results achieved and, above all, we would like to thank our Governments which in the last few months have worked side-by-side with us, and continue to do so, with the aim of finalizing an agreement that will ensure the protection of sovereign assets while promoting cooperation between the two teams. This commitment will allow us to better serve our Navies, provide the appropriate support for common export operations and effectively lay the foundations for the consolidation of the European defense industry”.
17 Jun 19. Lockheed: No concern that Raytheon-UTC merger will affect F-35 program. Lockheed Martin F-35 program manager Greg Ulmer said on Monday he had “no concern” that the proposed merger of Raytheon Co and United Technologies Corp would affect the F-35 program or pressure its margins.
“I don’t see any concern,” Ulmer told reporters at the Paris Airshow when asked if the merger of two key suppliers would affect the F-35 program, which is working hard to reduce costs. Ulmer also said Turkish firms continued to produce components for the aircraft despite a row over Ankara’s plans to buy the Russian S-400 air defense system. He said plans by the U.S. government to start winding down Turkey’s participation in the F-35 program would not affect Lockheed’s production plan this year. (Source: Reuters)