Military

Air Force Plant 6
Marietta, GA

Air Force Plant 6 is northwest of Atlanta, GA, near Dobbins AFB and Lockheed-Georgia. The site covers 926 acres (of which the government owns 82%) and includes nearly 7.5 million square feet of industrial floor space (of which the government owns 78%). AFP 6 is oper-ated by Lockheed-Georgia (now Lockheed Martin). The site includes high bay facilities used for the fabrication and assembly of large aircraft. It does not have the capability to service large aircraft once assembled and must use the nearby Lockheed-Georgia facili-ties for this. The plant has flyaway capabilities from the Dobbins AFB runways.

The plant was established in 1941 on the Cobb County Airport site and began operation in 1943. From 1943-1945, Bell Aircraft Corporation manufactured B-29 bombers. Production ceased in 1945 and for 6 years the plant was used for machine and tool storage. In 1951, the plant was reactivated and used by Lockheed Aircraft Corp. to modify the B-29. Since then, Lockheed has operated the plant to manufacture, modify, and maintain the B-47, C-130, C-141, C-140, and C-5. From 1951 to 1955 the plant experienced a surge in production, with employment rising to 20,000 employees. By 1960 production declined and employment levels dropped to about half the 1955 total. During the 1960s with the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Vietnam buildup, the workforce grew again to 33,000. In the late 1980s the plant supported the C-5B and C-130 production programs and supplied spare parts and kits for the C-130 and C-141.

The major products produced by Lockheed Martin Aeronautical Systems Company (LMASC) for the buying activities include basic and applied research, technical data for aircraft support, aircraft development and production, interim contractor support of aircraft, and aircraft parts. Services include the repair, retrofit and overhaul of aircraft, sustaining engineering on fielded aircraft, and logistical support. LMASC is concurrently developing and producing the C-130J Hercules. It is also developing the F-22 Raptor, the premier developmental program of the United States Air Force. In recent years, LMASC has produced the C-5B, the largest US military transport aircraft and P-3 Orions for Korea. P-3s are used the world over for submarine interdiction, oceanographic, atmospheric and meteorological research, and for other scientific work. LMASC is also the center for the development of the advanced radar on the Navy's ES-3A surveillance aircraft. Aircraft parts and maintenance work involve the C-141, the C-5, the C-130, the P-3, the ES-3A and other aircraft. LMASC is also participating in the Joint Strike Fighter development.