The A400M Prepares for Delivery: An Update from Seville, September 2012

10/22/2012
2012-10-22 Second Line of Defense visited the Seville final assembly line (FAL) in late September for an update on the delivery schedule and process. And our guide to the effort was the senior Airbus Military engineer Jesús Portillo, in charge of the A400M Program Management Office. As with engineers, the approach…

The Christening of the America Class Amphibious Ship: The Opening of a New Era (Updated)

10/21/2012
2012-10-19 By Robbin Laird I am attending the christening event for the new America class ship which will be held October 20, 2012.  And have had the opportunity to discuss the ship with several key players in developing and defining the new ship. Discussions have been held with the prospective…

BAE Turns on New Automated F-35 Facility

10/19/2012
10/18/12  According to The Engineer: The new Integrated Assembly Line (IAL) at the company’s Samlesbury site in Lancashire will help the company ramp up production from the current level of one per week up to one per day by 2016 Installed in the latest phase of the new F-35 fighter…

Visiting the Light and Medium Aircraft Line at Airbus Military: September 2012

10/14/2012
2012-10-14 During a recent visit to Seville, Second Line of Defense had a chance to talk with Martin Armas, in charge of the industrialization of the final assembly line.  His formal title is Head of M and L Industrial Management and Control. During the visit, several planes were in various…

The Coming of an Airbus Plant to Mobile Alabama

09/18/2012
2012-09-18 by George Talbot For Mobile, Ala., the announcement on July 2, 2012 that the city would be the site of a $600 million, 1,000-worker assembly plant for Airbus aircraft seemed to prove the point that persistence pays off. The city in 2011 lost its bid to become the assembly…

The Coming of the AMERICA Class Warship to the USN-USMC Blue-Green Team

09/07/2012
2012-09-07 By Robbin Laird When Ed Timperlake and I were commenting on the CNO’s recent piece in the USN Institute Proceedings on platforms and payloads, we underscored how some of the new assets fit into the CNO’s approach. The CNO's approach is reinforced by the kinds of platforms starting to come…