WESTLAKE VILLAGE, California, June 2, 2011: MBDA Missile Systems celebrated a milestone in the company’s U.S. history today during a ceremonial rollout of the 10,000th Diamond Back® wing assembly at their Westlake Village, California division.
The Diamond Back® wing assembly is used by the US Air Force’s Small Diameter Bomb (SDB1) program. The Boeing Company is the prime contractor. In 2010, MBDA Missile Systems received a Boeing Performance Excellence Award for its work as a Diamond Back® wing manufacturer. The Boeing Company issues the award annually to recognize suppliers who have achieved superior performance. MBDA maintained a Silver composite performance rating for each month of the 12-month performance period, from Oct. 1, 2009, to Sept. 30, 2010.
Jerry Agree, CEO of MBDA Missile Systems in the US said: “This production milestone and the performance award are a credit to every employee who had a hand in designing and building Diamond Back wings and a testament to the high quality of our work force.”
The fully integrated Diamond Back® wing for SDB is in full rate production and has been combat proven in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Future variants of the Diamond Back® wing are in development for other applications, including MBDA’s SABER™ (Small Air Bomb Extended Range) weapon.
Note to Editors:
MBDA is a world leading missile systems company offering a comprehensive international product range incorporating today’s most advanced technology. With an annual turnover in 2010 exceeding $4 billion, a forward order book of over $17 billion and over 90 customers world-wide, MBDA Missile Systems and its U.S. National Company offer a complementary range of weapon systems, including the world-leading METEOR air to air missile, numerous precision weapon systems, warheads and fuzes, and the Laser Guided Zuni™ rocket.