Lockheed Martin signs with Patria for F-35 landing gear doors
Patria has signed a second agreement with Lockheed Martin for work on F-35 aircraft. (Photo: US DoD)
Finland’s purchase of F-35A aircraft was approved as a Foreign Military Sale (FMS) in October 2020 and 14 months later the aircraft was selected by the Finnish government. The FMS announcement noted a deal for 64 F-35A aircraft along with missiles, munitions and related equipment for an estimated cost of US$12.5 billion.
Finland’s Patria will manufacture 400 F-35 landing gear doors under a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) signed with Lockheed Martin as part of the deal which saw Finland purchase 64 aircraft.
This MoA has provided the contractual framework for the stand-up and qualification of a landing gear doors production line at Patria’s Halli facility in Jämsä, Finland. The production line will deliver landing gear doors for the F-35 global fleet.
It is the second deal signed between the two companies with the first one announced at the Paris Air Show last year for forward fuselage assemblies for 400 aircraft.
In addition to this work Patria is involved in the production of structural components and will establish co-production projects with Pratt & Whitney for the F135 engines powering Finnish F-35s.
Petri Hepola, chief programme officer, F-35 at Patria, said: “This long-term agreement is an important addition to Patria´s future capabilities [and] the further expertise of F-35 materials in connection with F-35 Forward Fuselage Assembly is essential for Finland´s security of supply.”
Patria said in a statement that “the agreement is one of many projects Lockheed Martin is partnering on with Finnish industry, universities, and research groups, focused on F-35 production, sustainment and defence-related technologies”.
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