USAF Modifies JPF Kaman Contract

Kaman Corporation of Bloomfield has entered into a contract modification with the United States Air Force (USAF) for the award of options 6, 7 and 8 under the company's multi-option "Joint Programmable Fuze" (JPF) contract. The modification provides new prices and quantities for the next three option buys upon exercise and updates the original contract negotiated in 1997.

The new value of the next option (option 6) of the contract is approximately $53 million. Deliveries are expected to begin in the second quarter of 2010. Upon exercise, the value of options 7 and 8 will depend on the quantity options selected by the USAF, add-ons, foreign military orders and future funding.

"This contract modification award is the result of our efforts to attain profitability on sales of the JPF to the Air Force," said Neal J. Keating, Kaman chairman, president and CEO.

The JPF is an electro-mechanical bomb safing and arming device for the USAF. It allows the settings of a weapon to be programmed in flight and is the current bomb fuze of choice of the USAF. In addition to the USAF, multiple nations currently utilize the JPF and further international market growth is planned. Kaman produces more than 2,000 JPFs per month at facilities in Orlando, Florida and Middletown, Connecticut.

Kaman Corp., headquartered in Bloomfield, Conn., conducts business in the aerospace and industrial distribution markets. The company produces and/or markets widely used proprietary aircraft bearings and components; complex metallic and composite aerostructures for commercial, military and general aviation fixed and rotary wing aircraft; safing and arming solutions for missile and bomb systems for the U.S. and allied militaries; subcontract helicopter work; and support for the company's SH-2G Super Seasprite maritime helicopters and K-MAX medium-to-heavy lift helicopters. Kaman is also one of the nation's leading industrial distribution companies for power transmission, motion control, material handling and electrical components from nearly 200 locations throughout North America.

$17-Million Main Runway Upgrade Complete

The main runway at Bradley International Airport (BDL) main is ready for take-offs and landings after a two-month, $17 million reconstruction project.

Runway 6-24 handles about 210 of the 350 daily flights at Bradley, located in Windsor Locks, about 15 miles north of Hartford.

State Department of Transportation crews milled, resurfaced, grooved and painted the 9,510-foot-long and 250-foot-wide runway. Upgrades included a water main crossing and new wiring for the runway lights.

The project was funded through an FAA Airport Improvement Program grant along with funds from the airport's capital improvement budget. The Connecticut Department of Transportation owns and operates the airport.