BELL

Bell, a Textron Inc company has reported on January 26, 2022 that it has completed the first Nacelle Improvements Modification on an Air Force CV-22 Osprey. The aircraft is part of an ongoing upgrade by Bell and Boeing to improve the wiring components within the nacelles and to change the structure in order to improve maintainability. The V-22 nacelles house critical power components to the V-22’s vertical take-off and landing capabilities and transition to forward flight.

BOEING

Boeing delivered the 12th P-8I maritime patrol aircraft to India on February 19, 2022. This is the fourth of four additional aircraft delivered under the options contract signed by the Ministry of Defence in 2016. The P-8I is an integral part of the Indian Navy’s fleet and has surpassed 35,000 flight hours since it was inducted in 2013.

Boeing and Atlas Air Worldwide announced on January 6, 2022, an order for four 777 Freighters. The order, placed in December, rounds out a record-setting 2021 for Boeing’s freighter family including new-production and converted models. Boeing has forecast that the global freighter fleet will grow by 70 per cent in the next 20 years, with freight carriers such as Atlas Air supporting a rapidly expanding global ecommerce business and evolving supply chains.

Boeing and Allegiant Air announced on January 5, 2022, an order for 50 737 MAX jets, with options for 50 additional airplanes. In Boeing’s first US ultra-low cost carrier (ULCC) deal, Allegiant selected two models – the 737-7 and 737-8-200 – in the 737 MAX family which provide the lowest seat-mile costs for a single-aisle airplane and high-dispatch reliability.

Boeing and China Airlines announced on January 27, 2022 that the carrier has ordered four 777 Freighters valued at $1.4 billion at list prices. The 777 Freighter is the world’s largest and most capable twin-engine Freighter with a range of 4,970 nautical miles (9,200 km) with a maximum revenue payload of 102 tonnes (2,24,900 lbs).

LOCKHEED MARTIN

Lockheed Martin announced on January 3, 2022 that it has completed another successful year as the F-35 programme continued to expand its global footprint and enhance operational capabilities. In 2021, two new countries – Switzerland and Finland – selected the F-35 for their new fighter jet programmes. Additionally, Denmark received its first F-35 and the Royal Netherlands Air Force became the ninth nation to declare its F-35 fleet ready for Initial Operational Capability.

NASA

It was announced on January 5, 2022 that Lockheed Martin, Amazon and Cisco have teamed up to integrate unique human-machine interface technologies into NASA’s Orion spacecraft, providing an opportunity to learn how future astronauts could benefit from far-field voice technology, AI and tablet-based video collaboration. The Callisto technology demonstration will be integrated into NASA’s Orion spacecraft for the agency’s Artemis I uncrewed mission around the Moon and back to the Earth.

NORTHROP GRUMMAN

Northrop Grumman Corporation has been awarded a contract on February 1, 2022, from the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Perceptually-enabled Task Guidance (PTG) programme to develop a prototype artificial intelligence (AI) assistant. Northrop Grumman, in partnership with the University of Central Florida (UCF), will develop an Operator and Context Adaptive Reasoning Intuitive Assistant (OCARINA) that will support UH-60 Blackhawk pilots, who fly with both visual and instrumented flight which varies with weather, time of day and other environmental factors.

Northrop Grumman has delivered the 51st E-2D Advanced Hawkeye production aircraft AA-52 which is essential for US Navy’s Battle Management Command & Control Mission. The E-2D Advanced Hawkeye was developed by Northrop Grumman and is the latest variant of the E-2. US Navy plans to obtain 72 E-2D aircraft until 2022. The Advanced Hawkeye is assigned aboard aircraft carriers and provides airborne early warning and command and control to carrier air wing. It is the only production carrier-borne AEW aircraft in the world.