Embraer Plane Dropped From U.S. Army-Navy Intel Program

Embraer Plane Dropped From U.S. Army-Navy Intel Program

Brazilian airplane-maker Embraer’s ERJ-145 aircraft has been dropped
from the U.S. Army’s Aerial Common Sensor (ACS) program due to
weight issues, prime contractor Lockheed Martin confirmed.

“Lockheed Martin and the customer … have concluded that a larger
airframe is necessary,” the company said in a June 30 statement to
Defense News.

The Army confirmed that an aircraft for the intelligence,
surveillance and reconnaissance program has not been selected.

“No final decision has been made on airframe selection,” the
Communications-Electronics Command (CECOM) at Fort Monmouth, N.J.,
said in a statement. CECOM added that “size, weight, power and
cooling challenges” are at issue in the design and development phase
of the program.

Army and Lockheed Martin sources pointed out that the ERJ-145 met
the program requirements when the contract was awarded last year,
but said the system has grown beyond that aircraft’s capacity. The
rapid pace of the development program added to the realization that
a new aircraft was needed, military sources said.

Lockheed Martin’s Integrated Systems and Solutions office,
Littleton, Colo., was awarded a contract last August worth up to
$821 million for the system design and development phase of the
program, which includes ground and other sensors, beating a team led
by Northrop Grumman.

Lockheed’s proposal included the Brazilian-designed ERJ-145
aircraft. Embraer subsequently announced plans to build the plane at
a new plant to be built in Jacksonville, Fla. Five ACS aircraft are
to be delivered in fiscal 2010 for evaluation and development
purposes. The U.S. Navy also is participating in the program, with
the intent to replace its EP-3E Aries II signals intelligence
aircraft.

The Army and Lockheed Martin stressed that while the aircraft
platform is an issue, the program itself continues on track. “This
is an airborne intelligence program, not an aircraft program,” said
one Army source.

An industry source confirmed that “four to six” other aircraft now
are being considered as the ACS platform. The Gulfstream 550 and
Embraer 190 are among the aircraft being considered, the source
said. Northrop’s proposal offered the Gulfstream G450 as its
aviation platform.

“We’re confident the Embraer 190 is the best possible solution” for
a larger ACS aircraft, said Doug Oliver, a spokesman for Embraer
North America.

Embraer’s selection last year as part of the ACS program was seen as
a breakthrough for the company, which had been trying to crack the
domestically dominated U.S. defense market. Whether Embraer remains
with the ACS program or not, a spokesman said, the company will go
through with its plans to build a new factory in Florida.

“We’re committed to Jacksonville,” said Oliver. The plant, he added,
is “a base for programs in the U.S. defense and homeland security
market. The ACS program was the first program we were after but we
hope to pursue other programs as well.”

From Defense News Via Military News Group

US will probably look for the 737 to do the job.