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Cubic lands contract for F-35 ACMI training system

September 28, 2007 (by Asif Shamim) - San Diego based Cubic Corp. have won a $50.3 million contract from Lockheed Martin to design and integrate a new embedded version of its latest air combat training system (ACMI) for the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF).

Cubic first developed its Air Combat Manoeuvring Instrumentation system (ACMI) back in 1971 after being awarded the contract by Naval Air Systems Command to address the US losses during dogfights during the Vietnam Air War.

The initial Cubic system used eight ground sites to track the airspeed and manoeuvres of as many as eight aircraft, each outfitted with externally mounted pods. The system also tracks simulated missile firings, recording hits and misses, which allowed the combat instructors to review the sorties in the post flight debriefs.

The new version being developed for the JSF program is the fifth generation system, said Philip J. Fisch senior director of Business Development for Air Ranges for Cubic Defense Applications.

"This is the first time the ACMI will actually be built into the aircraft as it comes off the production line at the factory," he said.

The new system is based on Cubic's pod-based P5 Combat Training System/Tactical Combat Training System technology, in use in several locations.

Each fighter has a 30 pound package of instruments installed which can be easily removed if required. The embedded system will allow the JSF to simulate training exercises even after the aircraft has been deployed to other air bases.

"The subsystem is interoperable with P5 training systems now being produced, so fighter pilots using pod-based or embedded P5 systems will be able to train with F-35 pilots."

The company is scheduled to deliver five prototypes as part of the Joint Strike Fighter's system development and demonstration program. Cubic went on to say its instrumentation will eventually be installed in all Joint Strike Fighters.

Walter J. Zable, chairman and CEO of Cubic Corporation, said Cubic' air combat training system for the F-35 will represent a breakthrough in air combat training technology.

"It will be the first air combat training system installed in a fifth-generation aircraft that has the airborne components for tracking and recording weapons engagements placed in the aircraft itself," Zable said. "Cubic’s half-century tradition of innovation continues into the 21st century with this exciting new long-term program."

The JSF is due to replace a multitude of aircraft used by the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and Turkey.

The development effort is expected to be the first step in a program that has estimates of a production run of as many as 4,000 Joint Strike Fighters.

The potential value of Cubic's work on the new system could be worth $300 million to $400 million over time, "once the Joint Strike Fighter gets into production," Fisch said. "So its long-term potential is very large."


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