WFEL set to soar after latest American deal
WFEL, the Stockport-based defence engineering company, has completed a major new order for the US Department of Defense.
The ski jump – the first of this type to be built anywhere in the world – was designed to replicate the runway of an aircraft carrier. It will enable the JSF to be tested on land, potentially saving the military millions of pounds.
WFEL, already a global leader in the design and manufacture of tactical military bridges, has made a strategic move to expand its engineering expertise into new military sectors with the ski jump.
Designed, developed and manufactured by WFEL, the $3.7 million (£2 million) jump is the brainchild of engineer Greg Roney.
A team from US Defense travelled to Stockport this week to see the finished product before it is deconstructed and shipped to Maryland. Once there, it will take just two weeks to re-assemble.
Tom Briggs, from the US Defense F-35 Integrated Test Force, said: "We've worked with WFEL for many years and knew they had the intellectual capital, as well as quality manufacturing processes, needed to deliver a challenging and bespoke project like this."
The company's chief executive, Ian Wilson, is also in talks with other militaries signed up to the JSF project.
Ian said: "The JSF will be one of the most advanced military aircraft ever made and we are proud to support the development team in achieving one of their key milestones, both on time and on budget . We have a long history of applying our specialised design and manufacturing skills to high quality and technically challenging products where deliverability and reliability are paramount and this project has been no exception.
"The US military is one of our biggest customers and we've been working with them since the 1980s. This year alone, we forecast around £20 million in sales to the Americans alone."
