From support to the global F-35 Lightning II fleet to working alongside Vertex in support of the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps, BAE Systems brings decades of trusted experience to delivering for some of the United States’ most important military air programs.
Harriet Clark, Vice President - Sustainment for BAE Systems’ Air Sector explains the company’s role and why it’s vital to deliver what the warfighter needs, exactly when they need it.
Last year, BAE Systems’ Air Sector marked a key milestone in our support to the U.S. Navy’s T-45 trainer fleet, with the agreement of a seven-year Contractor Logistics Support (CLS) deal which expanded our sustainment services to aircraft in the United States.
The Vertex Company [A V2X company] awarded the contract to BAE Systems in 2022, outlining an agreement to provide enhanced logistics and engineering support to the US Navy fleet of nearly 200 T-45 trainer aircraft. Under the new CLS contract, we deliver a broad range of performance-based sustainment services, including maintenance, repair, logistics and training, backed up by expertise in logistics, technical services, and platform health monitoring tools.
BAE Systems’ engineers, logisticians and sustainment specialists work alongside Vertex at US Naval Air Stations in Kingsville, Texas; Meridian, Mississippi; Pensacola, Florida; and at Vertex’s headquarters in Madison, Mississippi. They are supported by engineers in the UK with a proven pedigree of delivering maintenance and support contracts for the UK, US, Middle East, and Australia. That includes sustaining platforms such as the Eurofighter Typhoon where we are part way through a PBL contract expected to drive in excess of $500m savings over its 10 year life, and the Hawk trainer aircraft, which we support around the world.
Together with The Vertex Company, our companies play a vital role in enabling the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps’ pilot training program for jet carrier aviation and tactical strike missions. Every day we ensure the T-45 Goshawk remains ready and available for service men and women to complete the final stage of their training before joining the fast-jet community and becoming frontline U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps pilots.
For BAE Systems, the T-45 CLS arrangement was only the latest in a long line of support services provided by our company to customers around the globe. It builds on decades of experience in providing support to warfighters; experience which ensures our military customers can be assured of mission readiness and resilience, wherever they are and whatever they require.
On the F-35 Lightning II, we have been part of the program since its inception, as a teammate to Lockheed Martin, and are a key contributor to the F-35 Global Support Solution, including the provision of spares, repairs and technical support for our systems and equipment - Crew Escape, Life Support, Fuel Systems and major structural components. We also support Lockheed Martin with a range of technical services and undertake a number of specific responsibilities in support of the RAF in the UK and the RAAF in Australia.
In 2020, we also signed a nine-year agreement with Vertex Aerospace to enhance availability of the U.S. Marine Corps’ AV-8B Harrier II fleet. That logistics support contract is ensuring increased efficiency of maintenance operations for the Harrier fleet using predictive maintenance techniques and smart stock optimization tools.
Together, we and Vertex Aerospace support the crucial training and combat operations conducted from U.S. Navy aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships, and forward operating bases through a contract which itself built on BAE Systems’ existing role in maintaining the AV-8B Harrier’s reaction control system and providing engineering and technical support.
With decades of experience delivering global sustainment and training services, we remain focused on understanding the challenges warfighters face and tailoring our expertise to introduce efficiencies and improve the readiness and resilience of aircraft.
