Military

Lockheed Changes Course on New Air Force Training Jet

courtesy of Lockheed Martin Corp.

For the past several months, Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT) and its partner, Korean Aerospace Inc. (KAI), have been considering a clean-sheet design for a new U.S. Air Force training jet. The T-X, as it’s mysteriously called, would replace the decades old T-33 trainer, and may be the last large Air Force contract available for some time.

A team composed of Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) and Saab are preparing two clean-sheet designs for the new training jet, and another clean-sheet design is reportedly being worked on by Northrop Grumman Corp. (NYSE: NOC) and partners BAE Systems and L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LLL). A fourth competitor, Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN), was last said to be considering a partnership with Italy’s Alenia Aermacchi, a subsidiary of Finmeccanica, which had terminated plans to partner with General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD) to bid on the new trainer.

A Lockheed executive said Thursday that its bid would offer a modernized version of KAI’s T-50. According to a report at Defense News, Lockheed EVP Rob Weiss said a clean-sheet design would be eight times more expensive than an upgraded T-50A. Weiss added:

At the end of the day, it costs more, takes longer, is higher risk and does not add any capability beyond what our modernized T-50 will do.


The Air Force is expected to publish a request for proposals later this year and award a contract in 2017 with an initial operational capability deadline of 2024. The contract is expected to require about 350 of the new trainers to replace the existing T-38 fleet.

Just last month Boeing won a contract worth $855 million to maintain and support the T-38 fleet through 2026. The company will provide services for 456 planes, including working on avionics, cockpit displays, control panels, communications systems and upgrading 37 aircrew training devices.

Want to Retire Early? Start Here (Sponsor)

Want retirement to come a few years earlier than you’d planned? Or are you ready to retire now, but want an extra set of eyes on your finances?

Now you can speak with up to 3 financial experts in your area for FREE. By simply clicking here you can begin to match with financial professionals who can help you build your plan to retire early. And the best part? The first conversation with them is free.

Click here to match with up to 3 financial pros who would be excited to help you make financial decisions.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.