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Lockheed-Martin Awarded WCMD and WCMD-ER Production Contract |
Released on Thursday, May 19, 2005
Lockheed Martin was awarded $52.9 million in a firm-fixed-price contract to
produce 1,655 Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser (WCMD) tail kits and 100 WCMD-Extended
Range (ER) wing kits for the US Air Force.
The purchase of 100 WCMD-ER kits signals the beginning of production for this
system. The WCMD-ER system adds a wing kit to the GPS version of the WCMD tail
kit to obtain a range of 30-40 nautical miles (up to 70 kilometers). The kits
will be mated with Sensor Fuzed Weapon (SFW), reducing collateral damage
concerns.
This WCMD production lot (Lot 5) brings the total to approximately 28,000 tail
kits for the U.S. Air Force. WCMD is used with area attack weapons, such as the
CBU-87 Combined Effects Munition (CEM) and CBU–97 Sensor Fuzed Weapon, to
enhance accuracy by correcting for launch transients, ballistic errors and winds
aloft. The system provides strike aircraft with an effective delivery means for
employing area attack munitions from any operational altitude or weather
condition.
This effort includes guidance kits for an international customer, engineering
support and field installation support. Work under the contract, awarded by the
Air Armament Center at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, will be performed at
Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control facilities in Orlando, Florida; Ocala,
Florida; and Carlsbad, California; and Lockheed Martin Assembly Services in
Americus, Georgia.
WCMD allows the warfighter to effectively employ area attack weapons with near
precision, while allowing crews to operate in the sanctuary afforded by high
altitude. This capability has significantly improved weapon effectiveness and
allowed the use of area attack weapons where they could not be used previously.
WCMD was deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq on B-52 and F-16 aircraft. In
addition, the system is certified on the F-15E strike aircraft and the B-1
bomber. Integration activities on the A-10 Thunderbolt close-support aircraft,
F-117 stealth fighter and F-35 Joint Strike Fight are on-going.
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Abbreviation
GPS - Global Positioning System
WCMD - Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser
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