Lockheed Martin to Move 560 Jobs to Texas from Marietta

Hundreds of Marietta-based Lockheed Martin employees who worked on the F-22 Raptor are having their jobs relocated to Fort Worth, Texas.

Lockheed Martin plans to move 560 salaried jobs from Marietta to its Fort Worth, Texas-based Aeronautics division by March, the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Dallas News and Fort Worth Star-Telegram report. Marietta employees affected include engineers, schedulers and persons in administrative positions. They have until Jan. 7 to decide if they plan to move. The employee group affected has been building the F-22 Raptor, and now they’ll be supporting the aircraft, Dallas News reports. Lockheed Martin continues to produce F-16 Fighting Falcons at a low level from the Fort Worth plant. That work has evolved into a support business that includes making modifications to and updating the F-16, Dallas News and Fort Worth Star-Telegram report. So …

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Gov. Nathan Deal Visits Lockheed in Marietta

During his visit, Gov. Nathan Deal received status updates for the site’s current programs, including the C-130J Super Hercules, C-5 Super Galaxy, P-3 Orion, F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal visited the Lockheed Martin site in Marietta on Thursday. During his visit, Gov. Deal visited the site’s production lines to meet with employees and toured a C-130J on the flight line. The governor also received status updates for the site’s current programs, including the C-130J Super Hercules, C-5 Super Galaxy, P-3 Orion, F-22 Raptor and the center wing assembly for the F-35 Lightning II. The aerospace industry and Georgia have strong ties, with more than 500 aerospace companies calling the state home. In 2010, Georgia’s aerospace exports topped $4.3 billion, ranking the state as the fourth highest for such exports in the United States. The Lockheed Martin site in Marietta has been a part of the state’s aerospace…

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Marietta's Military Patch

Last Raptor Reports for Duty

Dobbins Air Reserve Base officers talk F-22s and the final Raptor's departure.

by Airman 1st Class Elizabeth Gaston, 94th Airlift Wing Public Affairs, Dobbins Air Reserve Base The last F-22 Raptor, tail number 4195, from Lockheed Martin Aeronautical Company left Dobbins Air Reserve Base May 5 to report for duty at its new unit at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson near Anchorage, Alaska. This final plane completes the Raptor project with Lockheed Martin and the operational Air Force's multi-role fighter contingent of 187 advanced tactile fighters.  The 195th Raptor was piloted by Lt. Col. Paul Moga, 525th Fighter Squadron commander and accompanied by Raptor number 193, piloted by Col. Dirk Smith, 3rd Wing commander. The 195th and 193rd Raptors will serve as the flagship jets for the group and wing, respectively. These …

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Lockheed Delivers Final, Historic F-22 Raptor to Air Force

This final Raptor joins a U.S. Air Force fleet of 187 operational F-22s and will join other F-22s in the Air Force’s 3rd Wing at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska.

Lockheed Martin delivered the 195th and last F-22 Raptor to U.S. Air Force leadership in a ceremony at the Marietta site Wednesday. With this delivery, the U.S. Air Force now possesses the world’s only 5th generation stealth fighter aircraft fleet in the world.  “There is no longer any nation that wishes us ill or any adversary who wishes us harm that has any doubt that their actions will have consequences—that they will be held to account and that our response will be undeterred,” said Robert J. Stevens, Lockheed Martin’s chairman and CEO. “The very existence of this airplane—your airplane—has altered the strategic landscape forever.” A host of distinguished officials participated in the event, including senior leaders from Lockheed …

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Final F-22 to Be Delivered to U.S. Air Force

With this delivery, the U.S. Air Force will have the world’s only operational fleet of 5th generation fighter jets.

Lockheed Martin will commemorate the delivery of the final F-22 Raptor stealth fighter during an official ceremony in Marietta on Wednesday, May 2. With this delivery, the U.S. Air Force will have the world’s only operational fleet of 5th generation fighter jets. This Raptor (tail number 4195) will be based at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson near Anchorage, Alaska. Senior leaders from Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Air Force along with local, state and national elected officials will attend this event. F-22 Raptors are assigned to seven U.S. bases. Flight testing takes place at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Operational tactics development continues at Nellis AFB, Nev. Pilot training takes place at Tyndall AFB, Fla. Operational F-22 aircraft…

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First Flight for Last Raptor

The fighter jet is the last of 187 F-22s produced.

The final Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor took to the skies for its first test flight in Marietta Wednesday with company test pilot, Bret Luedke at the controls. Raptor 4195 has a May delivery date and will join other F-22s in the U.S. Air Force’s 3rd Wing at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The final F-22 Raptor to be built for the U.S. Air Force, tail number 4195, rolled off the Lockheed Martin Aeronautics assembly line at ceremony at the company's Marietta plant in December. The fighter jet is the last of 187 F-22s produced.

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Lockheed Martin Names Executive VP of Aeronautics Business

Larry Lawson is currently the vice president and general manager of the F-35 program.

Lockheed Martin's board of directors approved the appointment of Larry A. Lawson as the executive vice president of the Aeronautics business area, following the announcement of Ralph D. Heath’s retirement. The transition is effective on April 1. Lawson has held a range of positions of increasing responsibility in his career of more than 32 years in aerospace, according to a press release. Lawson, currently the vice president and general manager of the F-35 program, started his career with McDonnell Douglas and in 1986 joined the Lockheed Martin Marietta site, where he served in various technical and managerial roles in capturing, developing and producing air-to-air and air-to-ground weapon systems. Prior to leading the F-35 program, he …

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Pentagon Proposes F-35 Delays

A reduced defense budget would delay but not reduce the purchase of the Lockheed Martin fighter jet.

Lockheed Martin’s F-35 production would slow down but not be eliminated or reduced under the budget proposal Defense Secretary Leon Panetta unveiled Thursday. The Pentagon would buy 179 fewer F-35 Lightning II fighters the next five years, the department’s Armed Forces Press Service said, but the Navy, Marines and Air Force would still purchase those planes later. The Republican lawmakers have touted the need to stick with the plan to buy more than 2,400 Joint Strike Fighters over the next decade-plus, and the new Pentagon proposal is a long way from being enacted. Lockheed Martin’s Marietta plant builds the center wing assembly, the core of the fuselage, for the F-35, which is assembled in Fort Worth, TX. The F-35 work has taken up the …

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Lockheed Martin in 2012

Lockheed Martin's Marietta manufacturing plant will focus on the C-130J, F-22, F-35, P-3 and C-5 programs in 2012.

In 2012, Lockheed Martin’s Marietta site will focus on the C-130J, F-22, F-35, P-3 and C-5 programs. The plant is looking at continuing employment in the range of 7,700 to 8,000. "We have a couple of things in the works," Johnny Whitaker, director of communications for Lockheed Marietta, said. "A lot of details hinge on the fiscal 2013 budget, which won't be submitted to the President until the early part of February. We're waiting on a lot more information that has to go through the bureaucracy." Employment at the Marietta plant may fluctuate based on customer needs and production requirements throughout the year, Whitaker said. Lockheed Martin will continue the C-130J Super Hercules product line, and the production rate is expected to be…

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PatchCast: Arrests in Marietta Man's Murder; F-22 Attacked; Chickenpox Outbreak

Here's a roundup of the top headlines from Marietta and nearby Patches for Dec. 20.

For more on these stories, click on the following links:

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