Good News Rains on Lockheed Martin Aeronautics

Lockheed Martin is reporting a flurry of sales and potential sales in its aeronautics sector in a year that's critical to the company as it tries to recover from a bad news year in 1999.

Lockheed Martin officials hope the recent news of F-16 deals involving Singapore, Thailand and the U.S. Air Force, all within a few days, will be symbolic for the future of the aeronautics sector, which has been reorganized and put under new leadership over the past months.

The most significant of the latest news is Singapore's decision to replace A-4 Super Skyhawks by buying 20 new F-16s, augmenting the 37 F-16s the country already has in service. Another 12 Singapore-leased F-16s are permanently based in the U.S. at Luke Air Base, Arizona, where pilot training on the aircraft is conducted by the U.S. and several allied nations. The newly purchased aircraft will be delivered in three to four years.

Furthermore, Thailand has signed a letter of agreement for 16 of the older F-16A/B Block 15 air defense fighters. They will be paired with 36 F-16s Thailand's air force already operates. The used aircraft were previously operated by the U.S. Air Force and are powered by Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-220E turbofan engines.

The Asian deals also signal the recovery of the defense market in that part of the world. While Singapore's modernization program wasn't set-back as badly as others by the Asian economic crisis of recent years, Thailand's modernization program suffered greatly, including the cancellation of an order for Boeing F/A-18s. But the Asian economies have largely recovered and procurement efforts in those countries are gaining strength.

In the U.S., there continue to be efforts on the part of some legislators to boost production of F-16 and C-130Js. House and Senate appropriators, who provide the funds for defense purchases, have added $122 million to the Pentagon's budget request for six more F-16s. Money for several more C-130Js was also added.

By Robert Wall