Lockheed Martin plans to bring a new manufacturing facility online later this month in Pinellas Park, Florida, that will assemble canopies and bulkheads for the F-35 Lightning II program, the company announced at a formal opening on Monday.
The new facility boasts 65,000 square feet of manufacturing and office space. Plans call for the facility to begin delivering parts to a production facility in Fort Worth, Texas, this summer, and more than 200 F-35 components to be delivered by the end of 2018.
“This is an exciting day for us in Pinellas Park,” André Trotter, the program director and general manager of the Lockheed Martin Pinellas Park operation, said. “Continued growth and success of the F-35 program is vital to our national security. The hard-working men and women who produce critical components for the F-35 program are what make all of this possible.”
Approximately 270 people currently work at the Pinellas Park facility. The company plans to add an addition 80 jobs by mid-2019, and 30 jobs were added in 2017 to support growing the F-35 production rate. During Monday’s formal opening, U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist (D-FL) said, “Keeping America safe and growing Florida’s economy are intertwined.”
“We’re proud of the men and women who work here, producing key components for the most powerful fighter jet the world has ever seen,’ Crist said. “The F-35 protects U.S interests abroad while returning our pilots home safely.”
Across Florida, Lockheed Martin employs approximately 14,400 people. The company’s F-35 program also engages 97 local businesses and supports 22,500 indirect jobs across the state. Additionally, Lockheed Martin plans to add an additional 500 jobs at a facility in Orlando by the end 2019.