Two months after the disclosure of the existence of the next-generation fighter demonstration plane, the US Air Force remained silent on which company may have manufactured this aircraft. But one thing is certain: classified aviation projects are increasing, and the three major defense aerospace giants in the United States, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Boeing, all have plenty of opportunities. Lockheed Martin's CFO Ken Posenriede revealed during an earnings conference call with investors on October 20th that the company's aviation division has recently won a confidential contract that will require the construction of a new building in Palmdale, California, where the company's Skunk Development Arm will test and create prototypes. The secret plane. Compared to the same period in 2019, the department's sales in the third quarter of this year increased by 8%, with approximately $130 million of the $502 million growth attributed to confidentiality work. But Posenriede hinted that there will be more growth in the future.

For the aviation industry, we do anticipate strong double-digit growth for our Skunk Works (our classified advanced development project). We will continue to execute on these recent awards, "he said, adding that there are still" plenty of opportunities. The classified work of Northrop Grumman's aviation systems division has also increased, with "restricted activities" in the autonomous systems and manned aircraft investment portfolio contributing to a 5% increase in sales this quarter, and a 4% increase so far this year compared to 2019. It is easy to draw a line from these contracts to illustrate the recent flight of the demonstrator of the next-generation air superiority project - the Air Force's efforts to develop a set of air superiority technologies, including drones, high-tech weapons, and what some refer to as the sixth generation fighter jet, although military officials have stated that any of the hybrid fighters may not be like traditional fighters. Although the US Air Force announced in September that at least one NGAD leaker exists, it is currently unclear which companies are involved. However, Richard Aboulafia, an aerospace analyst at Teal Group, said that there are many other long-standing and emerging air force demands that may be the source of this classified work.

It is evident that there are currently more prototype design activities underway than commonly known. I believe that most of the work related to NGAD is being done at the system level. He said, "This is clearly happening at the airframe level as well, and of course, there are many potential drone developments that are definitely worth paying attention to, from MQ-9 Reaper replacement to strategic reconnaissance requirements, which is fundamentally a very expensive activity

In this case, the uncertain factor is Boeing Company. Due to investors' focus on the commercial aspects of the business, including plans for the Boeing 737 Max to return to flight, as well as the continued decline in sales caused by the global pandemic and its chilling effect on air travel, executives did not discuss confidential activities related to Boeing's defense, aerospace, and security during the company's earnings conference call on October 28th.

In response to questions about Boeing's classified business, a Boeing spokesperson said, "Overall, the defense and aerospace markets remain important and relatively stable, and we continue to see strong global demand for our critical projects. We expect a market opportunity of $2.6 trillion in the defense and aerospace sectors over the next decade, including important classified work

After years of failed competition, there are signs that the company's fighter jet production facility in St. Louis, Missouri, as well as its advanced project department Phantom Factory, are recovering their health.

In the past two years, the company has won many major awards, including the Navy's MQ-25 tanker drone and T-7A trainer aircraft, both developed by Mirage Factory. Boeing's work on the T-7 has been praised by Air Force procurement director Will Roper for its use of digital engineering technology, including simulating product design, production, and lifecycle to reduce costs. The company has also started selling advanced F-15EX fighter jets to the US Air Force, injecting a second life into the aircraft with this latest model of fighter jet.

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