A Lockheed Martin official said today that the Corporation's Aeronautics company has "strong products, solid performance and a great future."

Speaking to reporters at the Air Force Association's 2007 Air & Space Conference, Aeronautics Business Development Vice President Jim Grant said the company is meeting commitments to its customers and selling what's proven to be a relevant and affordable portfolio of aircraft to the United States and allies.

Grant highlighted the F-22's tempo of successes from deployment to Kadena Air Base in Japan, 100 percent sortie rate at Red Flag, the Collier Trophy win, to today's announcement of Follow-on Test and Evaluation II (FOT&E II) success. The F-22 Raptor is operational today and flying at five U.S. Air Force bases, ready to respond to national command authority whenever needed.

"The F-22 will be relevant for the next 40-50 years," said Grant. "The Raptor brings revolutionary capabilities to the battlespace and as a force multiplier-improves airborne legacy aircraft performance."

Grant described the F-35 Lightning II as a critical defense asset and the only fifth generation option for affordably recapitalizing the U.S. and international tactical fighter fleets. "The F-35 brings advanced stealth and can strike a wider variety of targets than any legacy aircraft," said Grant. "With internal weapons, advanced sensor suite and sophisticated avionics, F-35 is the first-ever fighter to meet three distinct military service requirements with a single, flexible design."

"The F-16 Fighting Falcon continues to provide proven, disciplined performance in peacekeeping and wartime operations and is the world standard for 24 air forces around the globe," Grant told reporters. "Continuous integration of new technologies has led to 52 follow-on buys by 14 customers, reaffirming the value and high quality of the F-16 and our commitment to customer satisfaction."

On the subject of tactical airlift, Grant talked about how the C-130J is every day meeting the full range of tactical airlift missions. "There is a pressing need to recapitalize USAF tactical fleets including combat delivery and special operations," said Grant. "The C-130J is already providing reliable intra-theater support and a KC-130J-based solution for both HC-130 and MC-130 recapitalization would provide a readily available low risk solution."

Grant said modernizing the C-5 fleet remains a fiscally sound solution for meeting the nation's strategic airlift requirements. "The C-5 modernization program capitalizes on the U.S. Air Force's investment in the C-5 and ensures this critical national strategic airlift resource continues serving the warfighter for years to come," said Grant. "Analysis and test data indicates that the C-5M program will meet or exceed all customer requirements, including those necessary to meet wartime objectives to move troops, very large loads and critical outsize cargo, like Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles."

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin employs about 140,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products, and services. The corporation reported 2006 sales of $39.6 billion.

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SOURCE: Lockheed Martin Corporation