HUGHES AIRCRAFT is to appeal against a US Federal District Court decision which allows Lockheed Martin and McDonnell Douglas (MDC) to continue development of the USAir Force/Navy Joint Air-to-Surface Stand-off Missile (JASSM).

The US defence company had won a ten-day temporary restraining order from the court after it had lodged an official protest with the US General Accounting Office (GAO) about the Pentagon's selection of Lockheed Martin and MDC to begin JASSM research and development.

The Federal Court later dismissed the Hughes motion to continue the work stoppage until the GAO ruled on the protest. The decision allowed the winning firms to resume work. The court backed the US Air Force's argument that a continued halt in work would come at "substantial cost" to the US Government. Hughes is intending to appeal.

Hughes has told the GAO that its bid represents "the best value" for the Pentagon, offering the most favourable average unit-procurement price and the "most effective" weapon. The company filed the protest after receiving its debriefing on the source decision.

At stake are JASSM contracts which are worth as much as $3 billion. Lockheed Martin and MDC were selected on 17 June to compete in the 24-month programme definition and risk-reduction phase of the joint USAF/Navy project.

One contractor will then be picked to begin 32 months of engineering and manufacturing development followed by production of more than 2,400 missiles, starting in 2000, for the USAF and USN.

A recently released GAO report on the JASSM project says that a central issue is use of acquisition reforms and commercial practices to keep costs down. It expresses concern, however, that the procurement strategy "-will not be sufficient to overcome the technical challenges of producing a viable and affordable system in the desired timeframes".

The Pentagon's JASSM timetable and unit-cost target "-seem optimistic when compared to the cost experience for other less-capable precision-guided munitions". The GAO says that the end of the Cold War should give the Pentagon more time to minimise these risks before low-rate initial production is initiated.

The GAO adds that the JASSM acquisition plan contains schedule and cost risks. "The plan does not appear to allow enough time to develop and test the complex technology needed for autonomous guidance and automatic target recognition, and then integrate the missile into the aircraft planned to carry it," the report concludes.

The GAO also questions the USN's commitment to the programme. It points out that no USN funding is earmarked for JASSM research and development or, indeed, for procurement.

Source: Flight International