Less than two months after declaring that Dan Crowley wouldn’t be budged from his job as head of Lockheed Martin’s F-35 program despite the turbulence that it has experienced of late, company leaders Monday announced that Crowley will be promoted to chief operating officer of Lockheed’s aeronautics sector. There, he’ll oversee not only the F-35, but the F-22, F-16, C-130, and C-5M programs. Ralph Heath, Lockheed’s aeronautics czar, explained the change, saying the company is at “an inflection point” on the F-35 as it transitions to production, and it’s necessary to ensure that the aeronautics business unit “is organized and aligned to successfully meet all” of its commitments. Defense Secretary Robert Gates sacked the Pentagon’s F-35 program manager in February, but Lockheed CEO Bob Stevens stuck with Crowley despite frustration voiced over his performance. Larry Lawson, who’s been F-22 program head, will now lead the F-35.
Due to the prolonged delay in deliveries of the Tech Refresh 3 version of the F-35 fighter, Denmark is pulling six of its TR-2-configured F-35 jets stationed in the U.S. back to home base in order to consolidate aircraft and get better training for its pilots and maintainers, the Danish…