Commercially developed, affordable platform to satisfy broad range
of U.S. and partner nations defense needs.
PROVIDENCE, R.I.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Textron AirLand, LLC, a joint venture between Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT)
and AirLand Enterprises, LLC, today unveiled its Scorpion prototype, a
versatile Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR)/Strike
aircraft platform. The aircraft was introduced during a press conference
at the Air Force Association Air & Space Conference and Technology
Exposition in National Harbor, Maryland.
Scorpion ISR/Strike twin-jet tactical aircraft developed by Textron AirLand. (Photo: Business Wire)
The demonstration aircraft is now in test phase, with first flight
scheduled to occur before the end of this year—a rapid schedule by any
measure of military jet development. Textron Chairman and CEO
Scott
Donnelly
said, “We began development of the Scorpion in January 2012
with the objective to design, build and fly the world’s most affordable
tactical jet aircraft capable of performing lower-threat battlefield and
homeland security missions.” Donnelly continued, “We relied on
commercial best practices to develop a tactical jet platform with
flexibility and capabilities found only in far more costly aircraft.”
The Scorpion is designed to accommodate the increasingly stringent
budget constraints of the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. partner
nations. The Scorpion’s design is well matched to the Air National
Guard’s missions such as irregular warfare, border patrol, maritime
surveillance, emergency relief, counter-narcotics and air defense
operations. While Scorpion’s lower acquisition price is an advantage, an
equally important benefit is the lower cost of operation over the
aircraft’s full lifecycle. Combining ease of maintenance and
globally-available commercial components, the Scorpion can significantly
lower the customer’s total cost of ownership.
F. Whitten Peters
, former U.S. Secretary of the Air Force, an investor
in and advisor to AirLand Enterprises, LLC, commented, “With its
industry-leading capabilities in commercial aircraft and defense systems
design and manufacturing, Textron was a natural partner to bring the
vision of an affordable tactical military jet to fruition.” He added,
“In an impressively short time, the joint venture has designed and built
a capable and mission-ready aircraft with no up-front government
funding. We believe Scorpion will fill a critical price and performance
gap in the tactical military aircraft market.”
For a closer look at the Scorpion and its mission capabilities, please
visit www.ScorpionJet.com.
Downloadable images of the aircraft are available in the Scorpion
Media Gallery.
About Textron
Textron is a multi-industry company that leverages its global network of
aircraft, defense, industrial and finance businesses to provide
customers with innovative solutions and services. Textron is known
around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell Helicopter, Cessna
Aircraft Company, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Greenlee and
Textron Systems. More information is available at www.textron.com.
About Textron AirLand, LLC
Textron AirLand, LLC is a joint venture between Textron Inc. and AirLand
Enterprises, LLC with the purpose of designing and manufacturing an
affordable, capable jet platform based on commercially available
technologies and processes for the tactical military jet aviation
market. More information about our initial aircraft is available at www.ScorpionJet.com.
About AirLand Enterprises, LLC
AirLand Enterprises, LLC was formed by a group of experienced aerospace
and defense executives dedicated to bringing an effective, low-cost,
ISR/Strike jet to domestic and international military markets, replacing
aging aircraft and complimenting high-end multi-role fighters.
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking
statements which may project revenues or describe strategies, goals,
outlook or other non-historical matters; these statements speak only as
of the date on which they are made, and we undertake no obligation to
update or revise any forward-looking statements. These statements are
subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors
that may cause our actual results to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including, but
not limited to, the efficacy of research and development investments to
develop new products or unanticipated expenses in connection with the
launching of significant new products or programs; the timing of our new
product launches or certifications of our new aircraft products; our
ability to keep pace with our competitors in the introduction of new
products and upgrades with features and technologies desired by our
customers; changing priorities or reductions in the U.S. Government
defense budget, including those related to military operations in
foreign countries; changes in foreign military funding priorities or
budget constraints and determinations, or changes in government
regulations or policies on the export and import of military and
commercial products; and volatility in the global economy or changes in
worldwide political conditions that adversely impact demand for our
products; performance issues with key suppliers or subcontractors.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20130916005176/en/
Source: Textron