When working with companies that do business with the US government, one may notice that they always have a CAGE code. A CAGE code, or Commercial and Government Entity code, is a special identifier that is assigned to businesses by the Department of Defense’s Defense Logistics Agency. These codes serve as a way to identify which companies are allowed to do business and accept contracts from the federal government.
The procurement process in the aviation industry is similar to the procurement process in other major industries. It begins with the requisitioning process which is communicated to the supplier using a purchase order (PO). There are several ways to identify supply needs. Initial provisioning using the recommended spare parts list (RSPL) or the initial provisioning list (IP) is common for preparing a purchase request. The RSPL is a list of recommended spare parts that manufacturers of airplanes recommend; the IP is a similar list but only includes critical spares according to operational requirements. Companies may also have need-based demands which is when a spare part is needed and out of stock. A company may need to procure an item for replenishment action, which is the act of re-stocking low-cost parts when they reach a certain level. The needs identified are communicated to the purchasing department and they create a purchase request (PR), where delivery is scheduled, quality parameters are defined, and the request is authorized or rejected.
Just this past week, Lockheed Martin and Israeli Defense officials held a press conference to announce that they have officially begun construction on the first F-35 “Adir” Lightning II for Israel. The F-35A “Adir” (which means “Mighty One” in Hebrew) variant will essentially be the regular F-35 except with a few minor Israel specific tweaks including Elbit Systems helmet mounted displays, Elbit Systems fuselage composite components, and Israel Aerospace Industries wing construction.
On November 24th, the Turkish Air Force shot down a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 that violated Turkish airspace. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin confirmed that an F-16 Turkish fighter jet downed the Sukhoi Su-24 with an air-to-air missile. However, Putin insisted that the Su-24 was flying in Syrian airspace at the time and not in Turkish territory.