USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

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richelieu
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 20 dicembre 2015, 0:05

Io protesto ..... :protest:
The Boeing and Lockheed Martin team believe that the air force’s selection process was irreparably flawed and therefore have decided to continue with their protest before the GAO,” the aerospace manufacturers said in a joint statement issued late on 18 December.
Fonte ..... "Boeing raises protest of ‘irreparably flawed’ bomber selection" .....
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... er-420226/

"Boeing-Lockheed Martin Statement on Long Range Strike-Bomber" .....
http://boeing.mediaroom.com/2015-12-18- ... ike-Bomber
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richelieu
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 21 dicembre 2015, 23:49

Ed io rispondo ..... :tongue3:
We understand that Boeing has filed an additional brief in this matter.
This is a routine step, particularly at this stage in a protest, and not in any way indicative of a meritorious protest.
Fonte ..... "Northrop Grumman Statement on the Long-Range Strike Bomber Program" .....
http://www.globenewswire.com/newsarchiv ... d=10158678
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richelieu
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 22 dicembre 2015, 8:28

Ricordi di tempi lontani e uno sguardo al futuro .....

Immagine
Multiple local media representatives, Northrop Grumman employees, civic leaders and military personnel were in attendance to witness the 25th anniversary of the B-2 Spirit at U.S. Air Force Plant 42 July 17, 2014.
(U.S. Air Force photo by Jet Fabara)

Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems president Tom Vice remembers spending 16h days more than 26 years ago inside a once tightly-secured factory in Palmdale, California, as a flight controls engineer preparing the flying-wing B-2 for first flight on 17 July 1989.
“We lived in these little vans testing the flight control system on the airplane, and it was really – and I can’t characterise it as anything else – but it was really cool,” Vice says.
Vice’s distant recollection came as he was standing inside the same factory – known as Building 401, Site 4 – in mid-December.
An assembly line for the centre fuselage of the Lockheed Martin F-35 occupies a little less than half of the building’s 1 million square feet.
The rest, including the cavernous hall once occupied by the B-2 programme, lies empty.
Fonte ..... "Northrop prepares for LRS-B growth in Palmdale" .....
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... le-420267/

Air Force Plant 42 ..... http://www.dreamlandresort.com/black_pr ... lant42.htm
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richelieu
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 17 gennaio 2016, 18:03

Un lungo articolo che appare sul numero di Gennaio dello 'Air Force Magazine' dell' AFA .....

Immagine

"Launching the New Bomber" ..... http://www.airforcemag.com/MagazineArch ... bomber.pdf
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 29 gennaio 2016, 23:38

Decisione del GAO imminente ..... Northrop Grumman fiduciosa .....
After Protest, LRS-B Ramp-Up To Be Slow .....

John A. Tirpak (1/29/2016)

​Assuming the protest over the Long-Range Strike Bomber award goes Northrop Grumman’s​ way, the company expects “modest” sales money from the program in 2016, attending a “gradual, month-by-month increase” in employment on the project, company CEO and president Wes Bush said Thursday.
Speaking during a conference call with reporters to discuss the company’s 2015 fourth-quarter results, Bush said the LRS-B “head count” in engineering will increase at a rate “appropriate for the start of this incentive-based program.”
The Government Accountability Office is expected to decide within two weeks whether the LRS-B award to Northrop was, as Boeing argued in its protest, “fatally flawed.”
Bush expressed confidence the protest would be resolved in Northrop’s favor and that the stop-work order would be lifted shortly thereafter.

The program represents a “meaningful opportunity for the company over time,” he added.
Northrop was selected to build the LRS-B by the Air Force in October, and Bush said the company remains heavily restricted in what it can say about the program.
For more on Northrop's fourth quarter earnings, click here .....
http://investor.northropgrumman.com/pho ... Id=5214632
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 14 febbraio 2016, 10:33

Un ostacolo imprevisto .....
US Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James is hopeful the service will be able to move forward with building the Long Range Strike Bomber despite a new Inspector General investigation into a top acquisition official’s failure to report a Northrop Grumman retirement account held by his spouse in his annual public financial disclosure form.
The news that the Air Force has reassigned Richard Lombardi over the financial disclosure issue comes days before the Government Accountability Office is set to rule on a bid protest filed by Boeing and Lockheed Martin over the service’s decision to award the LRS-B Bomber contract to Northrop in October.
The timing of the announcement raises questions about implications to the protest decision, due Feb. 16.
Fonte ..... "Air Force Secretary Hopes LRSB Will Move Forward Despite New IG Probe" ....
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defens ... /80258224/

Anche qui ..... "Top Air Force Acquisition Official Pushed Out Over Link To Northrop" .....
http://breakingdefense.com/2016/02/top- ... -northrop/

Per come l' ho capita ..... si tratterebbe di una sorta di conflitto di interessi ..... per giunta neanche di eccessiva gravità ..... tale da incidere (in senso negativo per Northrop Grumman) sull' imminente decisione del GAO (Government Accountability Office) relativa alla protesta di Boeing .....
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richelieu
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 14 febbraio 2016, 19:08

Ancora sul 'caso Lombardi' ..... http://www.af.mil/AboutUs/Biographies/D ... bardi.aspx
Will AQ Shake-Up Affect LRS-B ? .....

JOHN A. TIRPAK (2/16/2016)​

Richard Lombardi, the Air Force's principal deputy assistant secretary for acquisition and logistics, has been reassigned to a post outside the acquisition portfolio, the service announced late Thursday.
Lombardi notified Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James on February 3 that on his annual financial disclosure form, he’d neglected to note that his wife has a retirement account with Northrop Grumman, thus potentially affecting his impartiality in acquisition matters.
James reassigned Lombardi on February 4 and USAF announced the change late on Feb. 11.
A USAF spokeswoman said the delay in announcing the move was due to the time it took to notify Congress and identify a replacement: Darlene Costello, a senior service acquisition official .....
http://www.acq.osd.mil/sts/organization ... ello.shtml
James referred the matter to the DOD Inspector General to see if the situation requires further action.
Asked Friday if the situation could influence the Government Accountability Office’s review of Boeing’s protest of the Air Force’s award of the Long-Range Strike Bomber to Northrop Grumman, James said, “I hope not, but it’s too early to tell.”
However, she added that Lombardi was not involved in the LRS-B source selection.
A Boeing spokesman had no comment.
The GAO is expected to rule on the LRS-B protest Feb. 16.
Under Secretary of the AIr Force Lisa Disbrow will retain her duties as the service acquisition authority.
Lombardi, a member of the Senior Executive Service, was sharing the duties of USAF acquisition chief - an appointed position - with Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch, Jr., military deputy to the assistant secretary for acquisition, since the departure last fall of William LaPlante.
Bunch said Thursday he and Costello will “work as a team” to run the AQ shop.
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
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richelieu
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 16 febbraio 2016, 21:06

Avanti NG !!!!! ..... forse ..... 8)
Il GAO respinge la protesta di Boeing ..... che, però, ha ancora la possibilità di presentare appello .....
The US government has rejected a Boeing attempt to overturn Northrop Grumman’s hold on a contract to develop and build the US Air Force’s long-range strike bomber (LRS-B).
The 16 February decision by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) disputes Boeing’s claim that the air force’s evaluation of the competing bids was “fundamentally flawed”.
Instead, the GAO says the air force’s technical and cost evaluation of Northrop’s proposed aircraft design was “reasonable, consistent with the terms of the solicitation and in accordance with procurement laws and regulations”.
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
Boeing now has the option to appeal the GAO’s decision with the US Court of Federal Appeals.
Fonte ..... "GAO denies Boeing bid to overturn LRS-B contract" .....
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... ct-422009/

"Boeing Statement on GAO Long Range Strike-Bomber Decision" .....
http://boeing.mediaroom.com/news-releas ... tem=129642

"GAO Denies Protest, Northrop Grumman to Get Back to Work on America's New Bomber" .....
http://www.globenewswire.com/newsarchiv ... d=10160105
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richelieu
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 16 febbraio 2016, 23:48

DefenseNews .....

"GAO Denies Boeing’s Protest of Bomber Contract; Northrop Gets Back to Work" .....
http://www.defensenews.com/story/breaki ... /80433300/

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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 17 febbraio 2016, 0:07

Il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
Stairway … Denied .....

John A. Tirpak (2/17/2016)

Immagine
An artist’s concept of a potential Boeing/Lockheed Martin Long-Range Strike Bomber.
The GAO denied the partnership’s protest of the Air Force's award to Northrop Grumman on Feb. 16, 2016.


​After a 100-day review, the Government Accountability Office on Tuesday denied Boeing’s protest of the Air Force’s award of the $60 billion Long-Range Strike Bomber contract to Northrop Grumman, but Boeing said it’s reviewing its legal options to press on.
In a statement (... http://boeing.mediaroom.com/news-releas ... tem=129642 ...) from Ralph White, GAO’s managing associate general counsel for procurement law, the GAO found “no basis to sustain or uphold the protest.”
The Air Force’s “technical evaluation, and the evaluation of costs, was reasonable, consistent with the terms of the solicitation, and in accordance with procurement laws and regulations.”
Boeing had argued the process was “fundamentally flawed” and that USAF didn’t properly account for the manufacturing efficiencies of Boeing and its partner, Lockheed Martin.
The GAO said the details of “Boeing’s challenges, and GAO’s decision resolving them,” are classified and “not available for release.”
Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said in a press release that the service looks forward to “proceeding with the development and fielding of this critical weapon system,” which she said is a vital requirement of “the joint community.”
Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh said “our nation needs this capability” to replace aging bombers and stay ahead of the technology of potential adversaries.
See also 'Launching the New Bomber' from the January issue of Air Force Magazine .....
http://www.airforcemag.com/MagazineArch ... bomber.pdf
See You in Court?

John A. Tirpak (2/17/2016)

​Boeing might press its complaints about the Long-Range Strike Bomber contract in court, after its protest was denied by the Government Accountability Office.
“We continue to believe that our offering represents the best solution” and that USAF erred in awarding the contract to Northrop Grumman, said Boeing in statement reacting to the GAO’s decision upholding the Air Force’s contract award.
“We will carefully review the GAO’s decision and decide upon our next steps with regard to the protest in the coming days,” Boeing said in a press release.
A GAO official said the decision is not necessarily the last word.
“Although it doesn’t happen often,” Boeing could take its complaint to the US Court of Federal Claims, he said, where a fraction of GAO’s roughly 2,500 protests a year end up.
He noted that this happened in 2012 with the A-29 Light Air Support aircraft for Afghanistan, which was awarded to Sierra Nevada and Embraer but protested by Beech Aircraft.
Beech sued (and lost) after losing two protests.
There is no financial penalty for Boeing if it sues - and fails - to reverse the LRS-B decision, but a GAO official said “there is the potential of alienating their government customer. … There is a potential price in goodwill” if Boeing presses on without a solid claim.
Everybody Back to Work .....

John A. Tirpak (2/17/2016)

Northrop Grumman said (... http://www.globenewswire.com/newsarchiv ... d=10160105 ...) it’s “pleased” that the Government Accountability Office rejected Boeing’s protest of the Long-Range Strike Bomber award Tuesday and is “delighted to be resuming work” on the project.
The Air Force was required to issue a stop-work order on the program on Nov. 6 of last year, when Boeing filed its GAO protest.
Northrop was obliged to absorb the expense of keeping its design team together during the nearly three-month delay in the program, and the Air Force reduced its Fiscal 2017 budget request for LRS-B because it would not be able to execute the program as planned.
However, in its fourth-quarter earnings report earlier this month, Northrop officials said work on the LRS-B will ramp up slowly during this fiscal year.
The Air Force’s 2017 budget request calls for $12.1 billion to be spent on developing the LRS-B during the next five years.
A first “usable asset” is supposed to be available circa 2024-2025, with initial operational capability in the late 2020s.
The Air Force said early on that it would seek 80-100 LRS-Bs, but has now locked down on a program of 100 aircraft.
Industry officials said it is unlikely that Northrop would be asked to stop work on the project again, unless Boeing presses and wins a case in federal claims court.
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 17 febbraio 2016, 19:13

Si ricomincia .....
Northrop Grumman will resume development of America's next stealth bomber after the US Air Force lifted a stop-work order that has been in place since 6 November, the service confirms.
The decision to continue work on the $23.5 billion development programme, which includes construction of an undisclosed number of test aircraft, comes after the US Government Accountability Office rejected a formal protest by Boeing, the losing bidder.
“The stop work order was lifted on 16 February and Northrop Grumman will immediately resume performance of the LRS-B contract,” an air force spokesman tells Flightglobal.
Northrop was not immediately available to comment.
Fonte ..... "Northrop resumes work on Long-Range Strike Bomber" .....
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... er-422079/
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 19 febbraio 2016, 14:16

A quanto pare ..... hanno l' intenzione di sbottonarsi ..... :mrgreen:

Immagine
The Eyes of March .....

John A. Tirpak (2/19/2016)

More information about the highly classified Long-Range Strike Bomber - specifically, the composition of the Northrop Grumman development and production team - should be released next month, Air Force deputy chief of staff for plans and requirements Lt. Gen. Mike Holmes said Thursday .....
http://www.af.mil/AboutUs/Biographies/D ... olmes.aspx
Taking questions after an AFA Mitchell Institute event in Arlington, Va., Holmes said, “I think we’ll make some announcements soon, most likely in the first week of March.”
He was responding to comments from retired Gen. Mike Loh, former head of Air Combat Command, who said the Air Force needs to build support for the LRS-B with Congress as soon as possible, and that the best way to start is to say “who’s on the team … because I don’t even know who’s building the engine.”
Holmes described the comment as “good advice.”
Loh joked that USAF had promised more information when the protest of the contract by Boeing was resolved, “and that was yesterday.”
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....

Inoltre ..... "US Air Force Promises More Details on Long Range Strike-Bomber" .....
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defens ... /80559496/
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 25 febbraio 2016, 19:23

Il grintoso McCain minaccia di azzannare il nuovo bombardiere .....

Immagine
The powerful chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. John McCain, told reporters Thursday he would not authorize the Air Force’s Long-Range Strike Bomber so long as it was procured using a cost-plus contract — a contracting vehicle he has railed at in the past.
McCain's comments came ahead of a formal, closed briefing during which Air Force officials will brief the committee on LRS-B, a top general told Defense News.
I am saying I will not authorize a program that has a cost-plus contract — and I told them that,” McCain, R-Ariz., said at a Defense Writer’s Group breakfast in Washington, D.C.
Fonte ..... "McCain Threatens To Block New Air Force Bomber" .....
http://www.defensenews.com/story/breaki ... /80921324/
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 26 febbraio 2016, 11:27

Il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA sull' intervento del senatore McCain .....
Just Say No to Cost-Plus Contracts .....

June L. Kim (2/26/2016)

​Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said Thursday that he will staunchly oppose a cost-plus contract for the Long-Range Strike Bomber, despite the fact that the Air Force has already awarded Northop Grumman the bomber contract, and the Government Accountability Office has denied Boeing’s protest of the contract award.
I will not stand for cost-plus contracts,” he told reporters.
Though the Air Force may argue that future technological uncertainty could lead to cost growth in development, thus making a cost-plus contract an industry necessity, his response to the bidders was simply, “Don’t bid on it. Don’t bid on it until you do know,” he said.
McCain is the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, which has the power to authorize - or not authorize - purchase of USAF’s next-generation bomber.
McCain said it is “infuriating” that the Pentagon has continued to allow a cost-plus mindset over the years.
I will not stand for it on any weapon system,” he repeated.
The military could learn from Silicon Valley,” he said, since “the commercial side of America can [develop advanced products] without cost-plus contracts.”

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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 26 febbraio 2016, 11:48

A rapporto dai capi ..... entro un mese .....
LRS-B Drives New Bomber Roadmap .....

John A. Tirpak (2/26/2016)

Immagine
Air Force Global Strike Command boss Gen. Robin Rand speaks during the Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 25, 2016.
Photo courtesy of Dan Higgins Photography.​


​Global Strike Command boss Gen. Robin Rand will brief an updated bomber roadmap to Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh and the heads of the other major commands within a month, Rand said in a press conference at AWS16 .....
http://www.af.mil/AboutUs/Biographies/D ... -rand.aspx
The new plan begins to take account of the Long-Range Strike Bomber now that the contract has been awarded and Boeing’s protest resolved.
The plan’s latest revision will “modify and refine where … we want to be in 2025 and out, based on capacity and ​capability” as well as “what are we going to be able to afford and maintain?”
Rand said he doubts the LRS-B will be “additive” to the bomber fleet because it would be “very difficult” to add the pilots, aircrews, and maintainers, as well as an additional logistics train to the bomber force within the expected limits of manpower and funding.
“As we get closer to the (deployment of the) LRS-B, that will inform us if we’re going to do further modernization with the B-1, the B-2, the B-52,” Rand explained.
“If we’re going to keep all of them and add the LRS-B, we’re going to have to start lead-turning that and start producing more bomber aircrews and maintainers. And I don’t envision we’ll go in that direction but … it could change.”
Welsh will make the call on whether to accept Rand’s recommendations.
Phasing out existing bombers for the LRS-B will have to be done “very, very prudently so that we are able to meet combatant commander requirements” for current fights while maturing the LRS-B system, Rand said.
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 26 febbraio 2016, 17:52

Rivelazione .....
Si chiamerà ..... B-21 ..... alla faccia di chi si aspettava un misero B-3 ..... :mrgreen:
E' proprio vero ..... l' USAF pensa in grande ..... 8)
The US Air Force secretary unveiled the first official rendering of the new Long Range Strike Bomber and revealed its official designation: the B-21.
In a speech at the Air Force Association's Air Warfare Symposium on Feb. 26, Secretary Deborah Lee James shared an artist's concept design of the next-generation bomber, which will be built by Northrop Grumman.
She also announced the plane's long-awaited designation, calling it the B-21.
However, the Air Force still has not decided on a name for the new B-21, James said. She called on airmen to send in suggestions.
Fonte ..... "US Air Force Unveils New B-21 Bomber" .....
http://www.defensenews.com/story/breaki ... /80976160/
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 26 febbraio 2016, 20:48

L' annuncio ..... dal 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
Back to the Future Bomber .....

John A. Tirpak (2/29/2016)

Immagine
Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James revealed the first artist rendering, shown above, of the B-21 bomber, formerly known as the Long- Range Strike Bomber.
Air Force artist rendering.


Ending years of speculation, Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James unveiled the designation and an artist’s concept of the service’s Long-Range Strike Bomber at AWS16.
Designated the B-21 - senior service leaders said the nomenclature is meant to evoke “21st century” - the flying-wing design aircraft bears a striking resemblance to Northrop’s original, circa 1980 design for the B-2, before a costly redesign was needed to strengthen the tail with additional “sawtooth” edges.
The image James showed revealed more angular air intakes than on the B-2; the exhaust area was not depicted.
It was not possible to determine the aircraft’s angle of sweep or size, and senior service officials said they are not yet ready to divulge the size of the aircraft or its particulars.
James did not reveal any of Northrop Grumman’s industrial teammates on the B-21, either, but senior service leaders said such information will be revealed in the coming weeks, after congressional briefings have been made.
James said the B-21 is emblematic of the Air Force’s intention to lead the Pentagon’s so-called “third offset” with innovative new technologies.
Northrop Grumman spokesman Tim Paynter said the company is “proud to serve as the prime contractor for the B-21 bomber, in partnership with the US Air Force, to deliver a capability that is vital to our national security.”
He deferred any further questions to the Air Force.
Immagine
L' antenato ..... in un 'rendering' rilasciato, nella primavera del 1988, al momento della sua rivelazione .....
https://www.flightglobal.com/FlightPDFA ... 201076.PDF

Prossimamente ..... si aprirà una competizione interna, riservata al personale dell' Air Force, relativa alla scelta di un nome appropriato da assegnare al velivolo .....
A New Bomber Contest .....

John A. Tirpak (2/29/2016)

​The Air Force will hold a service-wide contest to name the new B-21 bomber, Secretary Deborah Lee James announced at AWS16.
James said she’s asking all members of the Air Force “family” - uniformed, civilians, and family members alike - to “learn more about the role this platform will play against the real threats that we will face” and submit appropriate nicknames, suggesting that she hopes the effort will lead to more advocacy for the system.
James also said to “stay tuned” for more bomber details, which will be revealed to Congress Tuesday at a classified session with a Senate Armed Service Committee panel.
James told reporters she and Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh will deliver another “state of the Air Force” briefing March 7, at which she suggested more information about Northrop Grumman team members and other industrial aspects will be revealed.
Congress has been given regular classified briefings on the B-21 since last spring, James said, adding that despite the disclosures made and to come, the system will remain highly secret.
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 26 febbraio 2016, 21:09

Altri commenti .....

AINonline ..... " U.S. Air Force Designates New Long Range Strike Bomber 'B-21' " .....
http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/ ... omber-b-21

Flightglobal.com ..... "USAF reveals Northrop's B-21 long-range strike bomber" .....
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... be-422459/

Flightglobal.com ....."USAF Global Strike chief seeks beefed-up bomber force" .....
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... rc-422469/

Flightglobal.com ..... "Boeing and Lockheed back off potential bomber challenge" .....
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... le-422470/

AW&ST ..... il commento di Bill Sweetman e Jen DiMascio .....
Meet the B-21 Bomber, Formerly Known As LRS-B .....

Bill Sweetman and Jen DiMascio - Aviation Week & Space Technology (Feb. 26, 2016)

The U.S. Air Force’s Long-range Strike Bomber (LRS-B) has a designation: the B-21.
Air Force Secretary Deborah James revealed a concept drawing of the new U.S. bomber, which will be built by Northrop Grumman, at the Air Force Association’s annual air warfare symposium in Orlando, Florida, on Feb. 26.
Based on the size, it is likely that scaled-up technologies and components could be drawn from the still-classified RQ-180 intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle.
But unlike other recent Northrop designs, the B-21 does not appear to be a cranked kite design.
Rather, it resembles the original B-2 design and appears to be a twin.
That was intentional, James noted in her speech.
“The B-21 has been designed from the beginning based on a set of requirements that allows the use of existing and mature technology,” James said.
She added that the Air Force will be accepting suggestions for the name of the new bomber and announce them at the Air Force Association conference in September.
Boeing and Lockheed Martin are not expected to file a lawsuit to challenge the loss of the $80 billion Long-Range Strike Bomber contract award to Northrop Grumman last October.
On Feb. 16, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) denied a contract protest by the two companies.
Boeing had argued that the Air Force’s evaluation of the price in the cost-reimbursement contract of $21.4 billion in 2010 dollars for the engineering and management development phase of the contract was flawed, according to the GAO.
Meanwhile the production cost of the first 21 aircraft remains classified, the Air Force has said “the fixed price production award supports the average per-unit cost of $511 million per aircraft,” according to a statement from the GAO’s Ralph White.
With the go-ahead from the GAO, the program has entered development. The Air Force plans to begin fielding the B-21 in the mid-2020s.
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 27 febbraio 2016, 0:03

E David Cenciotti rievoca i misteriosi avvistamenti avvenuti un paio di anni fa .....

"The U.S. Air Force has revealed the first image of its future Long Range Strike bomber: the B-21" .....
http://theaviationist.com/2016/02/26/us ... -21-image/

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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 27 febbraio 2016, 10:21

Il Segretario all' Air Force Signora Deborah Lee James presenta, in occasione dello 'Air Warfare Symposium 2016' dell' AFA, il nuovo bombardiere .....


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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 2 marzo 2016, 10:45

In risposta alle critiche del senatore McCain .....
In Defense of Cost-Plus .....

Jennifer Hlad (3/2/2016)

​The Air Force went with a cost-plus contract for the engineering, manufacturing, and development of the B-21 Long-Range Strike Bomber because of the risks involved, Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch told the House Armed Services Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee on Tuesday .....
http://www.af.mil/AboutUs/Biographies/D ... ch-jr.aspx
“There is no one size fits all when it comes to deciding what kind of a contract you want to use on an acquisition program,” said Bunch, the military deputy in the office of the Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition.
“When there’s technical risk and you’ve never built something before, there’s a risk that’s out there, and a cost-plus environment is more frequently used in that case.”
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, recently said he opposes the cost-plus contract for the LRS-B and called it “infuriating” that the Pentagon continues to allow them.
But Bunch said technical risks and the ability of a contractor to absorb a loss were two main reasons to go with cost-plus in this instance.
He said the Air Force knows there are concerns about controlling cost growth, and that is “a focus area that we’ve had from the very beginning of the program.”
The service has limited some of that risk by using mature technologies that will be integrated into the platform, rather than developing a system along with the platform, Bunch said.
It also created an incentive structure that works to the service’s advantage.
“If they do not control costs and they do not control schedule, they will in the end not get any fee,” he said.
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 3 marzo 2016, 10:39

Come già riferito ..... l' USAF tenta di difendersi ..... ma il sempre più irritato (o dovrei scrivere: irritabile?) senatore McCain non intende cedere .....
Less than a week after Sen. John McCain threatened to block the Air Force’s new B-21 bomber so long as it was procured using a cost-plus contract, top service officials took to Capitol Hill to defend their acquisition strategy.
However, the meeting appears to have done little to appease the powerful chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----
"Sen. McCain continues to be concerned about the cost-plus structure of the B-21 development contract," his office told Defense News March 2.
"He will carefully consider his legislative options to address these concerns."
Fonte ..... " Air Force Defends B-21 on Hill, but McCain Still 'Concerned' " .....
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defens ... /81200182/
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 4 marzo 2016, 9:36

Interviene la Signora Deborah Lee James ..... Segretario per l' Air Force .....
Defending LRS-B .....

Amy McCullough (3/4/2016)

Immagine
Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee on March 3, 2016. Screenshot photo.

Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James staunchly defended the Air Force’s acquisition strategy for the B-21 Long-Range Strike Bomber, clearly anticipating push-back from Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. John McCain, who has threatened to do what he can to block the cost-plus contract award.
“Experience tells us that there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to acquisition contracts and strategies, because … we have certainly examples of cost-plus failures, but there also have been cost-plus successes,” said James on Thursday.
“Likewise, we have had some successes in fixed-price work, but there’s also been some noteworthy failures …​ to include A-12, the Tri-Service Standoff Attack Missile, the C-5, the future combat system, and the C-17.”
The contract awarded to Northrop Grumman, which the Government Accountability Office upheld following a protest from rival contractor Boeing, uses a “mix of contract types” that were “specifically chosen to capitalize on the advantages” of each, “while limiting the potential risks for cost growth and/or performance issues,” said James.
Engineering and design of the new bomber is cost-plus, representing about 30 percent of the total contract amount, while 70 percent is a fixed-price contract, said James.
“It’s a shared-risk situation and the bulk of the incentives are geared toward the tail-end of the EMD, which gives the contractor the incentive to go as quickly as possible” to production, she added.
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 8 marzo 2016, 0:12

Ed ecco a voi ..... i partners .....
Almost five months after the Air Force awarded Northrop Grumman a hotly contested contract to build the secretive long range strike bomber, now called the B-21, Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James gave reporters a sneak peek at the list of major subcontractors on the program during a March 7 briefing at the Pentagon.
As many expected, F-35 engine-maker Pratt & Whitney will build the B-21 engine at its facility in East Hartford, Connecticut, James announced.
As Defense News reported in November, the decision not to go with GE Aviation for the B-21 engine reflects a departure from history, as GE builds the F118 that powers Nothrop’s B-2 stealth bomber.
Fonte ..... "Pratt & Whitney, BAE Among Major B-21 Contractors" .....
http://www.defensenews.com/story/breaki ... /81454014/
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 8 marzo 2016, 9:47

Dal 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
Bomber Districts Alert .....

John A. Tirpak (3/8/2016)

Immagine
​​Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh discuss the state of the Air Force during a news conference at the Pentagon, March 7, 2016.
(DOD photo by Army Sgt. 1st Class Clydell Kinchen)


The Air Force released the names and work locations of seven main industrial partners of Northrop Grumman on the new B-21 bomber Monday.
Pratt & Whitney, in East Hartford, Conn., will serve as the principal subcontractor, confirming Air Force Magazine’s surmise at the time of Northrop’s selection for the project, though Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James did not specify the powerplant the B-21 will use, nor how many engines it will carry .....
http://www.airforcemag.com/DRArchive/Pa ... stery.aspx
The other team members and their work locations James named during her “State of the Air Force” address were, in order:
BAE Systems, Nashua, N.H.;
GKN Aerospace, St. Louis, Mo.;
Janicki Industries, Sedro-Woolley, Wash.;
Orbital ATK, Clearfield, Utah, and Dayton, Ohio;
Rockwell-Collins, Cedar Rapids, Iowa;
Spirit Aerosystems, Wichita, Kan.
James did not give any information on the roles each would play, nor would she specify where Northrop will perform integration work or final assembly.
Northrop’s Palmdale, Calif., plant, however, where the B-2 was manufactured, has large excess capacity.
The Air Force has been pressed to provide the industrial information so that advocacy by constituent groups can begin.
James said additional information on the B-21 will be released as “appropriate.”
James also said the Boeing protest of the award to Northrop has been resolved in USAF’s favor, and Boeing has declined to pursue the matter in court, and “​work has begun” on the new airplane.
Inoltre .....

"USAF names seven top-tier Northrop B-21 suppliers" .....
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... rs-422840/

"U.S. Air Force Identifies Pratt & Whitney, Other Suppliers of B-21" .....
http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/ ... liers-b-21
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 8 marzo 2016, 10:34

La diatriba sul contratto continua ..... con ulteriori chiarimenti da parte dell' USAF .....
Why a Cost-Plus Bomber .....

John A. Tirpak (3/8/2016)

Immagine
Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch, military deputy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, briefs the press at the Pentagon on the service's new B-21 bomber on March 7, 2016.
(Screenshot photo)


​Members of the Senate Armed Services Committee chided Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James last week .....
http://www.airforcemag.com/DRArchive/Pa ... LRS-B.aspx
..... for pursuing a cost-plus contract for the new B-21 bomber instead of a fixed-price arrangement, but senior uniformed acquisition official Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch said the contracting vehicle is appropriate .....
http://www.af.mil/AboutUs/Biographies/D ... ch-jr.aspx
The bomber is “fundamentally different” from a contract like the fixed-price KC-46A tanker, he said.
The tanker offers both commercial and foreign military sales opportunities for Boeing, and is a variant of an in-production aircraft, whereas the bomber is an all-new airframe that will likely never be sold abroad, said Bunch.
James said Northrop Grumman is “incentivized” to get through development “quickly” and will lose fees if it misses schedule milestones.
The program is structured with incentive fees, and if Northrop misses milestones, fees could fall “to zero,” added Bunch.
Moreover, he said, while cost is a major performance goal, “schedule is the heavier-weighted of the two,” and future milestones won’t move if an earlier one is missed.
Contracting methods are not “one size fits all” and the contract vehicle for the B-21 is the right one, said Bunch.
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 9 marzo 2016, 0:08

Il botta e risposta continua ..... ora tocca alla signora Deborah Lee James .....

Immagine
As Sen. John McCain continues his crusade against the Air Force’s next-generation B-21 bomber, service secretary Deborah Lee James is warning of the cost in both dollars and time of terminating the contract.
“It is always possible to terminate a contract - you terminate, you pay fees to terminate, you can rebid it, which of course takes more money and time,” James said March 7 during a briefing at the Pentagon.
“So these things are always possible. We certainly hope it won’t come to that.”
James’ statement was a pointed answer to McCain’s recent pledge to block funding for the Air Force’s new bomber so long as it is procured using a cost-plus contract - a contract vehicle he has railed against in the past.
Fonte ..... "Air Force Secretary Warns of Consequences if McCain Blocks B-21" .....
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defens ... /81457700/
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 9 marzo 2016, 0:21

Date un nome a quell' aereo .....
Name That Bomber .....

(3/9/2016)

The Air Force has released details about how to submit a name for the B-21 bomber.
Active Duty, Reserve, and Guard airmen, as well as their dependents, members of the US Air Force Civil Service, and Air Force retirees are eligible to submit up to three proposed names by May 6.
The proposed names cannot consist of more than two distinct words, and they must meet Air Force naming guidelines.
The full rules and more details about the contest are available on the Air Force Global Strike Command website ..... http://www.afgsc.af.mil/Library/Namethe ... Rules.aspx
“I’m challenging and I’m calling on every airman,” Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James said when announcing the contest at AWS16.
“We’d like all of you to give us your best suggestions for a name for the B-21, America’s newest bomber."​
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 9 marzo 2016, 9:26

In nome della trasparenza ..... manteniamo, per ora, il segreto ..... :mrgreen:
Avoiding Connect the Dots by Classifying Cost .....

JENNIFER HLAD (3/9/2016)

Immagine
​Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch, the military deputy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, testifies before the Senate Armed Services Airland Subcommitee on March 8, 2016.
Screenshot photo.


Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Tuesday challenged the Air Force’s assertion that the contract value of the B-21 bomber must remain classified.
“Why would you not ever want to tell the American people how you’re going to spend their dollars?” McCain asked Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch, the military deputy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition ..... http://www.af.mil/AboutUs/Biographies/D ... ch-jr.aspx
The Air Force is “trying to balance the transparency that we want to do” with protecting the “critical capabilities of this asset,” Bunch said in a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Airland Subcommittee.
“Sir, we’re trying to prevent the ability of individuals to link different pieces that may be unclassified together to get an idea of how the money’s being spent.”
Bunch told subcommittee Chairman Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) he believes the service will be able to release the contract award amount “in the upcoming months,” and stressed that USAF wants to avoid the lack of transparency that undermined the B-2 program ..... http://www.airforcemag.com/DRArchive/Pa ... ategy.aspx
“We’re trying to release as much information, be as forward as we can. We just haven’t gotten to the point where we can release that at this stage,” Bunch said.
See previously: "Slowly Revealing the LRS-B" ..... http://www.airforcemag.com/DRArchive/Pa ... LRS-B.aspx
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 9 marzo 2016, 10:22

Ecco, in maggior dettaglio, cosa era accaduto nel corso dell' udienza davanti al 'Senate Armed Services Airland Subcommittee' .....

Immagine
McCain hammered Lt. Gen. Arnie Bunch, the Air Force’s deputy assistant secretary for acquisition, on the secrecy surrounding the B-21, which is expected to cost $100 billion over the life of the program.
The American people have a right to know precisely how many of their dollars will go toward the bomber, McCain argued.
“Why would you not want to tell the American people how you are going to spend their dollars?” McCain asked, interrupting Bunch multiple times.
“Why shouldn’t the average citizen know the cost of a whatever - how many tens of billions of dollars - 80 to 100 billion dollar program? Shouldn’t the taxpayers know that?”
Bunch defended the Air Force’s decision to keep certain details about the B-21 classified, arguing that the decision not release the exact cost of the aircraft is an attempt to prevent hostile actors from connecting the dots.
Fonte ..... "McCain Hammers Air Force on Bomber Cost Secrecy" .....
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defens ... /81501682/

Ragazzi ..... siamo alla RISSA ..... :lol:
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 11 marzo 2016, 0:02

Impareggiabile Bogdan .....
..... prima lascia trapelare qualcosa ..... per poi affermare che lui non ne sa niente ..... :drunken:
Pratt Bomber Work Should Make F-35s Cheaper .....

JOHN A. TIRPAK (3/11/2016)

​Pratt & Whitney should be able to cut costs on the F-35’s engine now that it’s been named as the builder of engines for the B-21 bomber, Joint Strike Fighter program manager Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan said Thursday.
Speaking at a McAleese and Associates seminar in Washington, D.C., Bogdan said, “I think there’re some things that we learned on the F135 at Pratt & Whitney that will greatly benefit” the new bomber.
“And at the same time, I think that Pratt & Whitney ought to be looking to drive the cost of the F135 engine down now that they have that other business. I would expect them to.”
Bogdan said technology developed for each of the engines should have application to the other, and there should also be economies on overhead from producing parts and full-up engines in the same locations.
Though Bogdan seemed to confirm that the F135 core will be used in the B-21, he backed away from that with reporters, saying he is not involved with the bomber program and has no insight into its particulars.
Fonte ..... il 'Daily Report' dell' AFA .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 16 marzo 2016, 18:15

McCain non demorde ..... anzi ..... :lol:

Immagine
In a recent letter to the secretary of the Air Force, Sen. John McCain demanded the service release the value of the B-21 bomber development contract awarded to Northrop Grumman last year.
“This is a critical program for our nation’s defense, and the American people deserve to know how many of their hard earned tax dollars will be spent in these initial phases as we embark on a major defense program expected to exceed $100 billion in total,” the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee wrote in a March 10 letter obtained by Defense News.
Fonte ..... McCain Demands Air Force Release B-21 Bomber Contract Value
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 21 aprile 2016, 18:34

Come minimo ..... 100 .....
US Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC) expects to complete an analysis of its bomber force numbers by the end of this calendar year, but already says that number will be based around a “minimum” operational requirement for 100 Northrop Grumman B-21s.
The major command’s chief Gen Robin Rand said at the Air Warfare Symposium in February that America’s needs somewhere between “175 and 200” combined strategic and conventional bombers.
Fonte ..... "USAF basing revised bomber count on 'minimum' of 100 B-21s" .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 6 maggio 2016, 10:08

Insomma ..... quanti ve ne servono ?
The House Armed Services Committee wants more clarity on how many B-21s the Air Force needs to meet combatant commander requirements.
The committee’s mark of the National Defense Authorization Act directs the Secretary of the Air Force to submit a report to HASC and the Senate Armed Services Committee estimating the number of B-21 aircraft USAF believes it needs to meet requirements .....
Fonte ..... "HASC Wants Details on New Bomber" .....
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Re: USAF ..... verso un nuovo bombardiere strategico .....

Messaggio da richelieu » 7 maggio 2016, 17:38

In attesa del B-21 ..... per colmare un vuoto venturo .....
“When you look at what bombers bring in terms of range, persistence and payload, we have a deficit of long-range strike capability,” says Lt Gen Stephen Wilson, a former B-1 and B-52 pilot who previously served as head of Air Force Global Strike Command.
“What that number is going forward I can’t tell you, but I would say we’re not where we need to be on that long-range strike.
“As adversaries continue to build advanced anti-access, area-denial capabilities that force our forces farther out, bombers will become more important.”
Fonte ..... " DOD awaits Northrop B-21 to fill 'long-range strike deficit' " .....

Nota .....
The introduction of precision-guided munitions, enabled by digital bomb bay upgrades, has kept the B-52 relevant since the type's maiden flight on 5 Aug 1954.
..... la data del primo volo che viene indicata nell' articolo è errata ..... :shock:
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