The Integrated Assembly Line produces one centre fuselage every 30 hours and manufactures centre fuselages for all three F-35 variants on a single production line. Northrop Grumman said the use of advanced manufacturing allows seamless production across the aircraft variants.
The company said augmented reality and virtual reality tools used on the line reduced centre fuselage assembly time by 35 percent. It also reported a 20 percent reduction in the technician learning curve.
Northrop Grumman is a principal partner on the F-35 Lightning II industry team, which develops, produces and sustains three variants of the stealthy, supersonic, multirole fighter aircraft. The programme supports both U.S. and international customers.
The company also produces the F-35’s AN/APG-81 active electronically scanned array radar and the integrated communication, navigation and identification system. In addition, it manufactures wing skins, leads the industry team in low observable technologies and provides sustainment support for the global F-35 fleet.
