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 (SDB Increment 1) 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 Agee, 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(tm) (Small Air Bomb Extended Range) weapon.