Royal Aeronautical Society Heathrow Branch September 2018 Lecture -
[RAeS President's Lecture]
"The X-35 vs X-32: The F-35 Competitive Concept Demo"
by Rear Admiral Simon Henley, President of the Royal Aeronautical Society.


ABSTRACT:
As military fighter-jet programmes become longer and less frequent, how best to approach the development of new aircraft, be they manned or otherwise, is one of the most important and most challenging issues for all involved in bringing aircraft to service.

Competitive Concept Demonstrators are one approach. It has been used on a number of programmes including the development of the multi-role multi-nation F-35 development and the early 21st Century is witness to the on-going evolution of the F-35A/B/C from the winner of the X-32 (Boeing) vs X-35 (Lockheed Martin) competition, both aircraft first flying in 2000.

In this kick-of lecture of the 2018/19 season, Real Admiral Simon Henley will speak on the competition and the Concept Demonstration phase of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) programme.


ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Simon joined the Royal Navy directly from school and underwent initial officer training at Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth, followed by studying for a degree in Mechanical Engineering at the Royal Naval Engineering College Manadon, Plymouth followed by 12 months post-graduate training in Aerospace Engineering. He served as an Aircraft Engineer Officer in the Royal Navy for 32 years, retiring in the rank of Rear Admiral.

During his career, he served in operational roles supporting front line squadrons on several helicopter types and Sea Harrier, and towards the end of his career specialised in future logistic support requirements for new aircraft and ships, and then in major project acquisition. He served as the UK lead in the US/UK Joint Strike Fighter Programme Office, was the UK lead in participation in the source selection process for that programme, and subsequently led the UK’s Joint Combat Aircraft Integrated Project Team for 4 years. His last job before retirement was as Technical Director and head of Programme Management for the Defence Equipment and Support organisation.

He subsequently joined Rolls-Royce as Programme Director for new programmes in Defence Aerospace, with responsibility for development and transition to production of the LiftSystem for the F-35 Lightning II programme, the UK elements of the F-136 engine for that aircraft and the TP400 engine for A400M, and the propulsion systems for the Mantis and Taranis unmanned programmes. Later he expanded his portfolio to include all Rolls-Royce military helicopter engines. In 2010, he was seconded to the Rolls-Royce/Snecma/MTU/ITP joint venture Europrop International as President, responsible for the development, certification, and introduction to service of the TP400 engine for A400M aircraft, culminating in the delivery of the first aircraft to the French Air Force in 2013. After leaving Rolls-Royce in 2014, he has worked as VP Programmes for an aircraft interior company developing and delivering the galleys for the Airbus A350, and subsequently as Director (Special Projects) for Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group.

Simon is a Chartered Aerospace Engineer, a Registered Project Professional, an Honorary Fellow of the Association for Project Management, and a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society.


Presentation: https://app.box.com/s/f0gc7zxnzq8eco8...