How can Lockheed compete with the Airbus A-400M

With the recent financial agreement of EADS with the A-400M partner countries, the new military cargo plane is off to production and deployment.

And the A-400M will become a big threat to the Lockheed C-130J, even in the US Air Force cargo fleet.

Lockheed can compete with the A-400M in three ways:

1. Upsize and update the C-130J
The main problem identified with the C-130J is that it cannot carry the Stryker LAV on a rollon/rolloff basis. But even given this constraint, Lockheed claims that the present C-130J can already transport more than 90% of the US Air Force requirements.
In order to be able to carry the Stryker LAV on a rollon/rolloff basis, the C-130J fuselage can be upsized. The wheelwell can be moved so as to enable the whole fuselage interior diameter available for cargo use. The wingbox can also be raised above the fuselage interior diameter to increase interior cargo area in the height dimension.
With these fuselage changes, the engine and propellers need also to be uprated to increase the payload capacity of the aircraft.
Other modifications may include:
- new avionics
- new materials to reduce empty weight
- more efficient production process

2. New C-130 version
Lockheed has the C-130XL proposal, pictured below, featuring a larger fuselage. It is a more radical modification than option 1 above.

Lockheed can use its experience in developing the Advanced Composite Cargo Aircraft (ACCA) (shown below) based on the Dornier Do-328JET, to develop the C-130XL in composite materials.
As in option 1 C-130 version, new engines/propellers, new avionics, efficient production processes, will have to be implemented. The new C-130 version will be the most capital intensive among the different options.


3. Cooperate with Antonov in the An-70 cargo plane

Lockheed can cooperate with Antonov in putting the An-70 into serial production in the U.S. using mostly U.S. components. The two companies can each supply a specified market territory and each others home countries. They can also share specified intellectual properties of the An-70 development.
Such an arrangement will certainly need to break down psychological barriers among the US Air Force personnel and generally, among US citizens, in order to push through.

Will the Fokker 100NG use the GTF of Pratt & Whitney?

In the latest web issue of Flight Global magazine (http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/03/06/339155/fokker-resurrection-scheme-secures-loan-for-prototype.html), it says that NG Aircraft is to receive €20 million ($27 million) loan from the Dutch economics ministry. The loan will be used to modify an existing Fokker 100 airframe to the Fokker 100NG standard, this year.




NG Aircraft is the successor company to the Rekkof company that has been attempting for the past years to restart production of former Fokker aircrafts like the Fokker 50, Fokker 70 and Fokker 100. If the Fokker 100NG is successful, it will follow the tale of the Twin Otter, the Dornier 228 and the Nomad planes whose production are also being restarted. (http://planetalks.blogspot.com/2008/07/return-of-rural-transports-twin-otter.html)

For the Fokker 100NG to be successful, it must be able to compete with existing regional jets such as the CRJ1000, Embraer E190, Sukhoi Super Jet, and the ARJ21; and the up and coming Bombardier CSeries, Mitsubishi Regional Jet and the Comac 919. Furthermore, NG Aircraft has to develop marketing and maintenance chains. Rekkof has good record already on the MRO of Fokker planes but may have to build-up its marketing muscle.

For the Fokker 100NG plane to compete, it must have at least 15% better operating economics than its predecessor Fokker 100. Fokker 100's reputation of a weight-efficient structure is a very good start.



Marrying this with a new design efficient engine such as the Pratt&Whitney PW1000 GTF will pose a very competitive product even against the new-build MRJ and the CSeries. The Pratt&Whitney PW1000 GTF engine design has the potential to eclipse other present engine designs in the market once its reliability has been proven. Further improvements on the turbojet parts of the GTF engine in materials and design, will make it even more competitive.

Other possible Fokker 100NG improvements that can be done includes

1. Weight reductions

2. Aerodynamic tweaks

3. New Avionics

4. More efficients seats and seating configuration

5. Flight optimization software

With these modifications, the Fokker 100NG will be ready to compete with the newer regional jets, like the 40 year old Boeing 747 design with the 747-8 version in the Very Large Aircraft sector.