Boeing

Citing its "outstanding combination of innovation and technology," Popular Science magazine has selected the Boeing Joint Strike Fighter design for its "1996 Best of What's New Award for Aviation and Space."

Popular Science Editor-in-Chief Fred Abatemarco said the Boeing Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) won because of its emphasis on using the best of emerging technology to address challenges, in this case designing an affordable, highly common airplane for the U.S. Air Force, Marines, Navy and the United Kingdom's Royal Navy.

"Each year, thousands of products are reviewed and editors select the winners through an intensive process of research, testing and debates," Abatemarco said. "Popular Science congratulates Boeing for its Joint Strike Fighter design which represents the best of what we'll see in the future of aviation."

Mickey Michellich, Boeing Joint Strike Fighter program manager, said, "The award means a great deal to us because of its focus on what is new. Here at Boeing, we turned to innovation and emerging technology to address a very large challenge -- how to give the armed forces the best strike fighter possible at a cost taxpayers can afford."

Michellich added that "when we started years ago, we knew that -- with the steadily increasing cost of fighter aircraft, and the JSF program's emphasis on affordability -- we couldn't take a 'business as usual' approach' to solving the problem. So we emphasized innovation and backed it up with a massive test program to verify our approach. We're delighted that Popular Science has recognized what we have accomplished."

The Boeing JSF program extensively uses rapid prototyping, innovative design and integrated product teams and has emphasized advanced materials and commercial manufacturing processes to cut costs and improve performance.

The U.S. Department of Defense Office recently awarded Boeing a contract to proceed with the 51-July Concept Demonstration Phase of the program.