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Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational
aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astrona ...
and
defense Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...
technology company. With 90,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $30 billion, it is one of the world's largest
weapons manufacturers The arms industry, also known as the arms trade, is a global industry which manufactures and sells weapons and military technology. It consists of a commercial industry involved in the research and development, engineering, production, and ser ...
and military technology providers. The firm ranks on the 2022 ''Fortune'' 500 list of America's largest corporations. Northrop Grumman and its industry partners have won the
Collier Trophy The Robert J. Collier Trophy is an annual aviation award administered by the U.S. National Aeronautic Association (NAA), presented to those who have made "the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America, with respect to im ...
eight times, most recently for developing the
X-47B The Northrop Grumman X-47B is a demonstration unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) designed for aircraft carrier-based operations. Developed by the American defense technology company Northrop Grumman, the X-47 project began as part of DARPA' ...
, the first unmanned, autonomous air system to operate from an aircraft carrier. Northrop Grumman currently leads the development of the
B-21 Raider The Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider is an American strategic bomber under development for the United States Air Force (USAF) by Northrop Grumman. As part of the Long Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B) program, it is to be a long-range, stealth intercon ...
, a long-range, stealth
strategic bomber A strategic bomber is a medium- to long-range penetration bomber aircraft designed to drop large amounts of air-to-ground weaponry onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating the enemy's capacity to wage war. Unlike tactical bombers, ...
that can drop conventional and
nuclear weapon A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...
s; it will replace Northrop's own
B-2 Spirit The Northrop (later Northrop Grumman) B-2 Spirit, also known as the Stealth Bomber, is an American heavy strategic bomber, featuring low-observable stealth technology designed to penetrate dense anti-aircraft defenses. A subsonic flying ...
, the world's only known stealth bomber. Among its other current projects are development and production of the
James Webb Space Telescope The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a space telescope which conducts infrared astronomy. As the largest optical telescope in space, its high resolution and sensitivity allow it to view objects too old, distant, or faint for the Hubble Spa ...
, an orbiting observatory launched in 2021, and production of the solid rocket boosters for NASA's
Space Launch System The Space Launch System (SLS) is an American super heavy-lift expendable launch vehicle developed by NASA. As of 2022, SLS has the highest payload capacity of any rocket in operational service, as well as the greatest liftoff thrust of any r ...
program. It was the sole bidder on the Air Force's Ground Based Strategic Deterrent program, which aims to develop and build a new
intercontinental ballistic missile An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more thermonuclear warheads). Conventional, chemical, and biological weapons c ...
.


Business sectors

Northrop Grumman is made up of four main business sectors: Aeronautics Systems, Defense Systems, Mission Systems and Space Systems. Prior to Northrop Grumman's reorganization of its divisions on January 1, 2020, the divisions were: Aerospace Systems, Mission Systems, Technology Services, and Innovation Systems.


Aeronautics Systems

Aeronautics Systems, headquartered in
Redondo Beach, California Redondo Beach (Spanish for ''round'') is a coastal city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located in the South Bay region of the Greater Los Angeles area. It is one of three adjacent beach cities along the southern portion of Sa ...
, produces aircraft, spacecraft, high-energy laser systems and microelectronics for the U.S. and other nations. This includes surveillance and reconnaissance, protected communications, intelligence, battle management, strike operations, electronic warfare, and missile defense to Earth observation, space science and space exploration. The
B-2 Spirit The Northrop (later Northrop Grumman) B-2 Spirit, also known as the Stealth Bomber, is an American heavy strategic bomber, featuring low-observable stealth technology designed to penetrate dense anti-aircraft defenses. A subsonic flying ...
strategic bomber, the
E-8C Joint STARS The Northrop Grumman E-8 Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (Joint STARS) is a United States Air Force airborne ground surveillance, battle management and command and control aircraft. It tracks ground vehicles and some aircraft, col ...
surveillance aircraft A surveillance aircraft is an aircraft used for surveillance. They are operated by military forces and other government agencies in roles such as intelligence gathering, battlefield surveillance, airspace surveillance, reconnaissance, observa ...
, the
RQ-4 Global Hawk The Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk is a high-altitude, remotely-piloted surveillance aircraft of the 1990s–2020s. It was initially designed by Ryan Aeronautical (now part of Northrop Grumman), and known as Tier II+ during development. Th ...
, and the
T-38 Talon The Northrop T-38 Talon is a two-seat, twinjet supersonic jet trainer. It was the world's first, and the most produced, supersonic trainer. The T-38 remains in service in several air forces. The United States Air Force (USAF) operates the most ...
supersonic trainer are used by the
US Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
. The US Army uses Northrop Grumman's
RQ-5 Hunter The IAI RQ-5 Hunter unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was originally intended to serve as the United States Army's Short Range UAV system for division and corps commanders. It took off and landed (using arresting gear) on runways. It used a gimbaled ...
unmanned air vehicle, which has been in operational use since 1995. The U.S. Navy uses Northrop Grumman-built aerial vehicles such as the BQM-74 Chukar, RQ-4 Global Hawk-based
MQ-4C Triton The Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton is an American high-altitude long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) under development for the United States Navy as a surveillance aircraft. Together with its associated ground control station, it is an ...
,
MQ-8 Fire Scout The Northrop Grumman MQ-8 Fire Scout is an unmanned autonomous helicopter developed by Northrop Grumman for use by the United States Armed Forces. The Fire Scout is designed to provide reconnaissance, situational awareness, aerial fire support a ...
,
Grumman C-2 Greyhound The Grumman C-2 Greyhound is a twin-engine, high-wing cargo aircraft designed to carry supplies, mail, and passengers to and from aircraft carriers of the United States Navy. Its primary mission is carrier onboard delivery (COD). The aircraft p ...
,
Grumman E-2 Hawkeye The Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye is an American all-weather, carrier-capable tactical airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft. This twin-turboprop aircraft was designed and developed during the late 1950s and early 1960s by the Grumman Aircraft ...
, and the
EA-6B Prowler The Northrop Grumman (formerly Grumman) EA-6B Prowler is a twin-engine, four-seat, mid-wing electronic-warfare aircraft derived from the A-6 Intruder airframe. The EA-6A was the initial electronic warfare version of the A-6 used by the United S ...
. Northrop Grumman provides major components and assemblies for different aircraft such as
F/A-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather, twinjet, twin-engine, supersonic aircraft, supersonic, carrier-based aircraft, carrier-capable, Multirole combat aircraft, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a Fighter aircraft, ...
,
F/A-18E/F Super Hornet The Boeing F/A-18E and F/A-18F Super Hornet are twin-engine, carrier-capable, multirole fighter aircraft variants based on the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet. The F/A-18E single-seat and F/A-18F tandem-seat variants are larger and more ad ...
,
EA-18G Growler The Boeing EA-18G Growler is an American carrier-based electronic warfare aircraft, a specialized version of the two-seat F/A-18F Super Hornet. The EA-18G replaced the Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowlers in service with the United States Navy. ...
, and the
Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is an American family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather stealth multirole combat aircraft that is intended to perform both air superiority and strike missions. It is also able to provide ele ...
. Aerospace systems also serves as the contractor for numerous space payloads and is the prime contractor for the
James Webb Space Telescope The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a space telescope which conducts infrared astronomy. As the largest optical telescope in space, its high resolution and sensitivity allow it to view objects too old, distant, or faint for the Hubble Spa ...


Mission Systems

Northrop Grumman Mission Systems, headquartered in
Linthicum, Maryland Linthicum is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. The population was 10,324 at the 2010 census. It is located directly north of Baltimore–Wa ...
creates military radar, sensors, and related products, including
C4I Command and control (abbr. C2) is a "set of organizational and technical attributes and processes ... hatemploys human, physical, and information resources to solve problems and accomplish missions" to achieve the goals of an organization or en ...
radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...
systems for
air defense Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
, Airspace Management radar systems such as AMASS, and battlefield surveillance systems like the Airborne Reconnaissance Low (ARL). Tactical aircraft sensors include the AN/APG-68 radar, the AN/APG-80
AESA Aesa or Aisa ( grc, Αἶσα) was a town of ancient Macedonia. Aesa belonged to the Delian League since it appears on a tribute list to Athens in 434/3 BCE. The editors of the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World identify Aesa wi ...
radar, and the AN/APG-83 AESA radar upgrade for the
F-16 Fighting Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful ...
, the AN/APG-77 AESA radar for the
F-22 Raptor The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is an American single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF). As the result of the USAF's Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program, th ...
, and the AN/APG-81 AESA radar for the F-35 Lightning II, and the AN/AAQ-37 electro-optical Distributed Aperture System (DAS) for the F-35, and the APQ-164 Passive Electronically Scanned Array (PESA) radar for the
B-1 Lancer The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force. It is commonly called the "Bone" (from "B-One"). It is one of three strategic bombers serving in the U.S. Air Force fleet along with ...
. Mission Systems produces and maintains the AWACS aerial surveillance systems for the U.S., the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
, NATO, Japan, and others. Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor for the development and integration of the Air Force's $2-billion
Multi-Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program The Multi-Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program (MP-RTIP), a U.S. Air Force project led by contractor Northrop Grumman to develop the next generation of airborne air-to-air and air-to-ground radar systems. While initially planned for multipl ...
. Northrop Grumman also supports the U.S. ballistic missile program, integrates various command, control and intelligence systems, and provides technical and management services, to governmental and military customers, all with an emphasis on cybersecurity. Many other smaller products are made by Northrop Grumman, such as
night vision goggles A night-vision device (NVD), also known as a night optical/observation device (NOD), night-vision goggle (NVG), is an optoelectronic device that allows visualization of images in low levels of light, improving the user's night vision. The dev ...
and secure communications equipment.


Defense Systems

The Defense Systems sector headquartered in
McLean, Virginia McLean ( ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County in Northern Virginia. McLean is home to many diplomats, military, members of Congress, and high-ranking government officials partially due to its proxim ...
(with a
Herndon Herndon may refer to: People * Herndon (surname), an American surname * Herndon Davis (1901–1962), American artist, journalist, illustrator, and painter Places in the United States Communities * Herndon, California, an unincorporated commun ...
mailing address,) works on "the entire life cycle of civil and defense platforms and capabilities through a range of services"."Technology Services"
''Northrop Grumman Corporation''. Retrieved: September 18, 2017.
Vinnell The Vinnell Corporation is an international private military company based in Herndon, Virginia, United States, specializing in military training, logistics, and support in the form of weapon systems maintenance and management consultancy. Vinne ...
, a Northrop Grumman subsidiary, provides training and communications for the military. In 2003, it landed a $48 million contract to train the
Iraqi Army The Iraqi Ground Forces (Arabic: القوات البرية العراقية), or the Iraqi Army (Arabic: الجيش العراقي), is the ground force component of the Iraqi Armed Forces. It was known as the Royal Iraqi Army up until the coup ...
. In 2005 the company won a $2 billion contract with
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
to overhaul most of the state's IT operations. Later that year, the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
paid $1.2 billion in a contract with the company to provide maintenance of its AWACS radar.


Space Systems

On June 7, 2018, the acquisition of Orbital ATK was completed and the former company was absorbed in Northrop Grumman as a new business sector called
Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems (NGIS) was a sector (business segment) of Northrop Grumman from 2018 through 2019. It was formed from Orbital ATK Inc. a company which resulted from the merger of Orbital Sciences Corporation and parts of Alli ...
. With this acquisition, Northrop Grumman got more involved in the space industry, which now includes the construction and launch of the Cygnus spacecraft. Until 2020 the firm was developing the
OmegA Omega (; capital: Ω, lowercase: ω; Ancient Greek ὦ, later ὦ μέγα, Modern Greek ωμέγα) is the twenty-fourth and final letter in the Greek alphabet. In the Greek numeric system/isopsephy (gematria), it has a value of 800. The wo ...
space launch vehicle, intended to carry the U.S. government's
national security National security, or national defence, is the security and defence of a sovereign state, including its citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of government. Originally conceived as protection against military atta ...
satellites into space. In September 2019 the company changed the name of the sector to Space Systems, effective in January 2020. On August 8, 2022, Northrop Grumman announced it was moving production of the engines and structures for its Antares rockets to the U.S. from Russia and Ukraine. The move of Antares production fully to the U.S. will happen through a partnership with Texas-based Firefly Aerospace. Northrop Grumman had purchased Russian RD-181 engines to power the Antares 230+ series, and the rocket’s main body was manufactured by Ukraine’s Yuzhmash State Enterprise. The new arrangement mainly resolves the break in Antares manufacturing caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. But in addition to salvaging the Antares rocket series, the cost-sharing deal also helps ensure NASA’s cargo missions to the International Space Station keep flying regularly and brings muscle to Firefly’s plan to build a larger rocket called Beta. Northrop Grumman and Firefly Aerospace will jointly produce an upgraded version of the Antares rocket, which will be known as the Antares 330. Northrop will provide the A330′s upper stage, avionics, software and launch site operations. Firefly will supply seven engines and build the A330′s largest structure, the first stage booster. Northrop and Firefly’s partnership also has a longer-term goal of building a new rocket, which the companies for now are calling MLV, or medium launch vehicle.


Affiliated companies and partners

Remotec, a subsidiary, is a manufacturer of
remote control vehicle A remote-control vehicle is defined as any vehicle that is teleoperated by a means that does not restrict its motion with an origin external to the device. This is often a radio-control device, a cable between the controller and the vehicle, ...
s for explosive ordnance disposal and hazardous material handling. A UK-based subsidiary, Park Air Systems, provides VHF and UHF ground-to-air communications systems for the civil and defense markets. Northrop Grumman has also worked closely with Antenna Associates, Inc., a manufacturer of
Identification friend or foe Identification, friend or foe (IFF) is an identification system designed for command and control. It uses a transponder that listens for an ''interrogation'' signal and then sends a ''response'' that identifies the broadcaster. IFF systems usual ...
(IFF)/
Secondary Surveillance Radar Secondary surveillance radar (SSR)''Secondary Surveillance Radar'', Stevens M.C. Artech House, is a radar system used in air traffic control (ATC), that unlike primary radar systems that measure the bearing and distance of targets using the de ...
(SSR) antennas located in Massachusetts. In August 2007, Northrop Grumman acquired
Scaled Composites Scaled Composites (often called simply Scaled) is an American aerospace company founded by Burt Rutan and currently owned by Northrop Grumman. It is located at the Mojave Air and Space Port in Mojave, California, United States. Founded to develo ...
in which it had previously owned a 40% stake. In 2008, Northrop Grumman began working with DHS Systems LLC, manufacturer of the Deployable Rapid Assembly Shelter (DRASH) in New York, as part of the U.S. Army's Standard Integrated Command Post System program."NG, DHS Technologies to support SICPS/TMSS."
''United Press International'', June 18, 2008.


History

Northrop Grumman can trace its lineage back to the beginning of the 20th century when the Grumman Corporation was founded on
Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
, New York. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
it built all American Navy aircraft. After the war it branched out into making the first
aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...
canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the term ...
s using left-over materials no longer needed for aircraft. Later the firm created a myriad of products such as
ballistic missile A ballistic missile is a type of missile that uses projectile motion to deliver warheads on a target. These weapons are guided only during relatively brief periods—most of the flight is unpowered. Short-range ballistic missiles stay within the ...
s, all-weather radars, the
Apollo Lunar Module The Apollo Lunar Module (LM ), originally designated the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM), was the lunar lander spacecraft that was flown between lunar orbit and the Moon's surface during the United States' Apollo program. It was the first crewed ...
, land and sea-based
fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...
and
Stealth bomber Stealth aircraft are designed to avoid detection using a variety of technologies that reduce reflection/emission of radar, infrared, visible light, radio frequency (RF) spectrum, and audio, collectively known as stealth technology. The F-117 Nig ...
s. Originally formed in California in 1939 by
Jack Northrop John Knudsen Northrop (November 10, 1895 – February 18, 1981) was an American aircraft industrialist and designer who founded the Northrop Corporation in 1939. His career began in 1916 as a draftsman for Loughead Aircraft Manufacturing Com ...
, the
Northrop Corporation Northrop Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer from its formation in 1939 until its 1994 merger with Grumman to form Northrop Grumman. The company is known for its development of the flying wing design, most successfully the B-2 Spiri ...
was reincorporated in Delaware in 1985. After the end of the
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, Northrop went on a series of acquisitions where they bought noteworthy companies such as
Grumman Aerospace The Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation, later Grumman Aerospace Corporation, was a 20th century American producer of military and civilian aircraft. Founded on December 6, 1929, by Leroy Grumman and his business partners, it merged in 1994 ...
, Westinghouse and
TRW Inc. TRW Inc., was an American corporation involved in a variety of businesses, mainly aerospace, electronics, automotive, and credit reporting.http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/TRW-Inc-Company-History.html TRW Inc. It was a pionee ...
in addition to a number of other enterprises. In 2018, Northrop Grumman completed the purchase of Orbital ATK, which has since been renamed to
Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems (NGIS) was a sector (business segment) of Northrop Grumman from 2018 through 2019. It was formed from Orbital ATK Inc. a company which resulted from the merger of Orbital Sciences Corporation and parts of Alli ...
. Today, Northrop Grumman is one of the largest defense contractors in the world.


1990s

In 1994, Northrop Aircraft bought
Grumman Aerospace The Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation, later Grumman Aerospace Corporation, was a 20th century American producer of military and civilian aircraft. Founded on December 6, 1929, by Leroy Grumman and his business partners, it merged in 1994 ...
, which built the
Apollo Lunar Module The Apollo Lunar Module (LM ), originally designated the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM), was the lunar lander spacecraft that was flown between lunar orbit and the Moon's surface during the United States' Apollo program. It was the first crewed ...
to create Northrop Grumman (NG) at a cost of $2.1 billion. The company purchased the remaining 51% interest in ''Vought Aircraft Company'' (Vought) in August 1994 for $130 million taking full control of the company after it had purchased an initial 49% interest in September 1992 for $45 million. In 1996, the new company acquired substantially all of the defence and electronics systems business of ''Westinghouse Electric Corporation,''
Westinghouse Electronic Systems Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems (NGES) was a business segment of Northrop Grumman from 1996 to 2015 until a reorganization on January 1, 2016 merged other Northrop Grumman businesses into NGES to form a new segment called Mission Systems. NG ...
, a major manufacturer of radar systems, for $2.9 billion, and Xetron Corporation. In 1997, the defense computer contractor Logicon was added, which had acquired Geodynamics Corporation in March 1996 and Syscon Corporation in February 1995. Northrop was the prime contractor on the radical
YF-23 The Northrop/McDonnell Douglas YF-23 is an American single-seat, twin-engine stealth fighter aircraft technology demonstrator designed for the United States Air Force (USAF). The design was a finalist in the USAF's Advanced Tactical Fighter (A ...
which was one of the two airplanes down selected for the
Advanced Tactical Fighter The Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) was a demonstration and validation program undertaken by the United States Air Force to develop a next-generation air superiority fighter to counter emerging worldwide threats, including Soviet Sukhoi Su-27 ...
but would eventually lose out to the
F-22 Raptor The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is an American single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF). As the result of the USAF's Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program, th ...
. Northrop would later partner with Lockheed on the F-35 and now serves as a principal member of the Lockheed Martin industry led team. In 1998, a merger between Northrop Grumman and competitor
Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American aerospace, arms, defense, information security, and technology corporation with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It ...
was considered but abandoned after resistance from the Department of Defense and Department of Justice. That same year, it acquired Inter-National Research Institute Inc. In 1999, the company acquired
Teledyne Ryan The Ryan Aeronautical Company was founded by T. Claude Ryan in San Diego, California, in 1934. It became part of Teledyne in 1969, and of Northrop Grumman when the latter company purchased Ryan in 1999. Ryan built several historically and tec ...
, developer of surveillance systems and unmanned aircraft, California Microwave, Inc., and the Data Procurement Corporation. On March 19, 1999, Northrop Grumman announced to restate its fourth-quarter results downward to a net loss because of problems related to its dealings with start-up satellite launch company Kistler Aerospace Corp. In 1999, Northrop Grumman and SAIC created AMSEC LLC as a joint venture, which grew "from $100 million in revenue in 2000 to approximately $500 million in fiscal year 2007."


2000s

In 2000, NG acquired Federal Data Corporation, Navia Aviation As, Comptek Research, Inc., and Sterling Software, Inc. In 2001, the company acquired
Litton Industries Litton Industries was a large defense contractor in the United States named after inventor Charles Litton Sr. During the 1960s, the company began acquiring many unrelated firms and became one of the largest conglomerates in the United States. ...
, a shipbuilder and defense electronics systems provider for the
U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...
. During the acquisition process, a new Delaware holding company, NNG, Inc., was formed, which merged with Northrop Grumman through a one-for-one common shares exchange in April 2001. Both Northrop Grumman and Litton became subsidiaries of the new holding company. The original Northrop Grumman Corporation then changed its name to "Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation"; the holding company, NNG, Inc., changed its name to "Northrop Grumman Corporation". Later that year,
Newport News Shipbuilding Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS), a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, is the largest industrial employer in Virginia, and sole designer, builder and refueler of United States Navy aircraft carriers and one of two providers of U.S. Navy ...
was added. On November 1, 2001, Northrop Grumman restated its third-quarter profit after stopping work on two ships for American Classic Voyages, which filed for bankruptcy protection. In 2002, Northrop Grumman acquired
TRW Inc. TRW Inc., was an American corporation involved in a variety of businesses, mainly aerospace, electronics, automotive, and credit reporting.http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/TRW-Inc-Company-History.html TRW Inc. It was a pionee ...
, which had acquired Braddock Dunn & McDonald (BDM) in 1997, and became the Space Technology sector based in Redondo Beach, California, and the Mission Systems sector based in Reston, Virginia, with sole interest in their space systems and laser systems manufacturing. The Aeronautical division was sold to Goodrich, and the automotive divisions were spun off and retained the TRW name. There were 15 acquisitions from 1994 to 2003. Northrop Grumman partnered with
EADS Airbus SE (; ; ; ) is a European multinational aerospace corporation. Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft throughout the world. The company has three divisions: '' ...
from the mid-2000s to offer the KC-30 Multi Role Tanker Transport aircraft in the U.S. Air Force's
KC-X KC-X is the United States Air Force (USAF) program to procure its next-generation aerial refueling tanker aircraft to replace some of the older Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers. The contest was for a production contract for 179 new tankers with est ...
tanker competition. In February 2008 the U.S. Air Force chose KC-30, but in September 2008 the Defense Department stopped the tanker program and in March 2010, Northrop Grumman announced it was withdrawing from the competition, deeming the revised requirements to be weighted in favor of the
Boeing KC-46 The Boeing KC-46 Pegasus is an American military aerial refueling and strategic military transport aircraft developed by Boeing from its 767 jet airliner. In February 2011, the tanker was selected by the United States Air Force (USAF) as the w ...
.Ostrower, Jon
"Northrop Grumman declines to bid on latest KC-X RFP."
''Flight International'', March 9, 2010.
On January 1, 2006, Northrop Grumman opened its business sector called 'Technical Services'. Northrop Grumman and
Boeing The Boeing Company () is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, telecommunications equipment, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product ...
collaborated on a design concept for
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...
's upcoming
Orion spacecraft Orion (officially Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle or Orion MPCV) is a Reusable spacecraft, partially reusable crewed spacecraft used in NASA's Artemis program. The spacecraft consists of a Crew Module (CM) space capsule designed by Lockheed ...
(previously the Crew Exploration Vehicle), but the contract went to rival
Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American aerospace, arms, defense, information security, and technology corporation with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It ...
on August 31, 2006. In 2006, Northrop Grumman had intended to bid for the U.S. Air Force's
Next-Generation Bomber The Next-Generation Bomber (NGB; unofficially called 2018 Bomber) was a program to develop a new medium bomber for the United States Air Force. The NGB was initially projected to enter service around 2018 as a stealthy, subsonic, medium-range, m ...
. Though it has not built a large manned aircraft since wrapping up B-2 Spirit production in the 1990s, the company has "been working hard to turn that perception around, with the skills and capabilities that back it up."Christie, R. "Northrop Grumman Hopes for Big Role in DoD Bomber Plan." ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
''. July 10, 2006.
However, by 2009, the teams working on this were told to close, as USAF's focus turned to a long-range strike instead. Northrop Grumman was one of two teams competing for the
Long Range Strike Bomber The Long Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B) is a development and acquisition program to develop a long-range strategic bomber for the United States Air Force, intended to be a heavy-payload stealth aircraft capable of delivering thermonuclear weapons. ...
, and in October 2015 won the contract for the Long Range Strike Bomber. On July 20, 2007, Northrop Grumman became the sole owner of
Burt Rutan Elbert Leander "Burt" Rutan (; born June 17, 1943) is a retired American aerospace engineer and entrepreneur noted for his originality in designing light, strong, unusual-looking, and energy-efficient air and space craft. He designed the record- ...
's
Scaled Composites Scaled Composites (often called simply Scaled) is an American aerospace company founded by Burt Rutan and currently owned by Northrop Grumman. It is located at the Mojave Air and Space Port in Mojave, California, United States. Founded to develo ...
. In 2007, Northrop Grumman created 'National Workforce Centers' as an alternative to
offshoring Offshoring is the relocation of a business process from one country to another—typically an operational process, such as manufacturing, or supporting processes, such as accounting. Usually this refers to a company business, although state gover ...
. Locations are
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
, Alabama;
Corsicana Corsicana is a city in Navarro County, Texas, United States. It is located on Interstate 45, 56 miles northeast of Waco, Texas. The population was 23,770 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Navarro County, and an important Agri-business ...
, Texas; Fairmont, West Virginia; Helena, Montana; Johnstown, Pennsylvania; and
Lebanon, Virginia Lebanon is a town in Russell County, Virginia, United States. The population was 3,424 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Russell County. History The town of Lebanon was founded in 1818 as per an effort to create a new county seat ...
. The Rapid City, South Dakota location closed in January 2012. In July 2008, three of four Northrop Grumman employees ( Thomas Howes,
Marc Gonsalves Marc David Gonsalves (born 1972) is an American Northrop Grumman employee who was abducted by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and was held hostage from February 13, 2003, to July 2, 2008. He was rescued in Operation Jaque, along ...
and
Keith Stansell Keith Donald Stansell is an American Northrop Grumman employee who was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, or FARC) and was held hostage from February 13, 2003 to July 2, 2008. He w ...
) were freed during
Operation Jaque } Operation Jaque ( es, Operación Jaque), named after the first letter of the month of the operation, July, and referencing check in chess, was a Colombian military operation that resulted in the successful rescue of 15 hostages, including former ...
after five years of captivity following their aircraft crash in the Colombian jungle. The fourth employee, Tom Janis, had been killed by the
FARC The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army ( es, link=no, Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de ColombiaEjército del Pueblo, FARC–EP or FARC) is a Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group involved in the continuing Colombian conflic ...
shortly after the crash in 2003. In January 2008, Northrop Grumman combined its Newport News and Ship Systems sectors into a new business unit named Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. On March 31, 2011, this was spun off as Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc ().


2010 to present

In November 2010, NASA selected Northrop Grumman for consideration of potential contract awards for
heavy lift launch vehicle A heavy-lift launch vehicle, HLV or HLLV, is an orbital launch vehicle capable of lifting between (by NASA classification) or between (by Russian classification) into low Earth orbit (LEO).50t payloads" , operational heavy-lift launch vehicl ...
system concepts, and propulsion technologies. From 2013, Northrop Grumman participates in the DARPA
Tactically Exploited Reconnaissance Node Tactically Exploited Reconnaissance Node (TERN), a joint program between DARPA and the U.S. Navy's Office of Naval Research (ONR), seeks to greatly increase the effectiveness of forward-deployed small-deck ships such as destroyers and frigates by ...
(TERN) program, and received $2.9 million for Phase 1 and $19 million for Phase 2. The TERN program attempts to launch and recover a
UAV An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controller ...
from mid-size ships to provide long distance intelligence gathering. In July 2013, Northrop Grumman won a training-simulation contract potentially worth $490 million to support the
U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...
's next-generation
aerial warfare Aerial warfare is the use of military aircraft and other flying machines in warfare. Aerial warfare includes bombers attacking enemy installations or a concentration of enemy troops or strategic targets; fighter aircraft battling for control o ...
virtual-training network. As of 2018, Northrop Grumman is the primary contractor for the
James Webb Space Telescope The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a space telescope which conducts infrared astronomy. As the largest optical telescope in space, its high resolution and sensitivity allow it to view objects too old, distant, or faint for the Hubble Spa ...
. In October 2015, the US Military announced it had awarded Northrop Grumman the contract for the successor to the B-1 and
B-52 The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...
, subsequently identified as the B-21. The initial value is $21.4 billion, and could eventually be worth up to $80 billion. In September 2017, Northrop announced its intention to acquire missile and rocket manufacturer
Orbital ATK Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems (NGIS) was a sector (business segment) of Northrop Grumman from 2018 through 2019. It was formed from Orbital ATK Inc. a company which resulted from the merger of Orbital Sciences Corporation and parts of Alli ...
Inc for $9.2 billion: $7.8 billion in cash plus $1.4 billion in net debt. On November 29, 2017, the acquisition was approved by Orbital ATK stockholders and on June 6, 2018 the merger closed after final FTC approval. The acquired company assets and naming were absorbed and become a division named Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems. In September 2020, Northrop Grumman won a $298 million sole-source contract for the Evolved Strategic Satcom program, an anti-jam communications satellite program intended to replace the Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite program where Northrop Grumman was a subcontractor to
Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American aerospace, arms, defense, information security, and technology corporation with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It ...
. In December 2020, Northrop sold its federal IT and mission support business to
Veritas Capital Veritas Capital is a New York-based private-equity firm founded in 1992 that invests in companies providing critical products and services, primarily technology-enabled products and services, to government and commercial customers worldwide. The ...
for $3.4 billion in cash. Veritas placed this purchase in its
Peraton Peraton Inc. is a privately held American national security and technology company formed in 2017, with corporate headquarters in Reston, VA. Its areas of service include space, intelligence, cyber, defense, homeland security, citizen security, ...
subsidiary. The sale closed in February 2021. The Mars Ascent Propulsion System for
Mars sample-return mission A Mars sample-return (MSR) mission is a proposed mission to collect rock and dust samples on Mars and return them to Earth. Such a mission would allow more extensive analysis than that allowed by onboard sensors. The three most recent concept ...
Ascent Vehicle contract was awarded to Northrop Grumman on March 5, 2021. For this Northrop Grumman to make a 3–meter long, two-stage,
solid-fueled Solid fuel refers to various forms of solid material that can be burnt to release energy, providing heat and light through the process of combustion. Solid fuels can be contrasted with liquid fuels and gaseous fuels. Common examples of solid fuel ...
Mars ascent rocket for the Mars Sample Return mission. This mission is to collect Perseverance's samples for return to Earth. In August 2022, Northrop Grumman announced it was moving production of the engines and structures for its Antares rockets to the U.S. from Russia and Ukraine. The move of Antares production fully to the U.S. will happen through a partnership with Texas-based Firefly Aerospace. Northrop Grumman had purchased Russian RD-181 engines to power the Antares 230+ series, and the rocket’s main body was manufactured by Ukraine’s Yuzhmash State Enterprise.


Finances


Corporate governance

From 1990 to 2003, before the merger with Grumman in 1994,
Kent Kresa Kent Kresa (born March 24, 1938) is an American businessman. Formerly, he was Chairman and CEO of Northrop Grumman, as well as Chairman of General Motors and has worked with the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA), the Lincoln Lab ...
was the
CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
of the company, who led the serial-acquisition strategy with a total of 15 additional acquisitions from 1994 to 2003, including Litton, Logicon, Westinghouse's defense electronics business, Ryan Aeronautical and
Newport News Shipbuilding Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS), a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, is the largest industrial employer in Virginia, and sole designer, builder and refueler of United States Navy aircraft carriers and one of two providers of U.S. Navy ...
, and TRW. He then retired in 2003 at age 65. In 2003 Ronald Sugar, the former
chief operating officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the "C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if t ...
, took over as CEO. Effective October 1, 2003, Sugar also served as the company
chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
of the board. In January 2010, Wes Bush succeeded as CEO and became company president. In November 2015, Gloria Flach was named COO. She is the former president of the company's electric services sector. On July 12, 2018, Wes Bush announced that he would step down as CEO effective January 1, 2019, and would remain chairman of the board until July 2019. His successor is Kathy J. Warden, who has served in numerous roles at the company, most recently president and COO.


Board of Directors

As of July 22, 2022: * Kathy J. Warden, CEO and president of Northrop Grumman * David Abney, former chairman and CEO of
UPS UPS or ups may refer to: Companies and organizations * United Parcel Service, an American shipping company ** The UPS Store, UPS subsidiary ** UPS Airlines, UPS subsidiary * Underground Press Syndicate, later ''Alternative Press Syndicate'' or ...
*
Marianne C. Brown Marianne C. Brown (born 1959) is an American businesswoman. Brown has held position of CEO of several companies and is currently the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of SunGard Financial Systems, since February 24, 2014. Early life and education ...
, COO of Sungard * Donald E. Felsinger, former chairman and CEO of
Sempra Energy Sempra is a North American energy infrastructure company based in San Diego, California. The company is one of the largest utility holding companies in the United States with roughly 40 million consumers. Sempra's focus is on electric and natura ...
*
Ann M. Fudge Ann Marie Fudge (born April 23, 1951) serves on a number of corporate boards, including those of General Electric, Novartis, Unilever and Infosys, as well as on several non-profit boards. She is former chairman and CEO of Young & Rubicam Brands, ...
, former chairman and CEO of VMLY&R * William Hernandez, former CFO of PPG * Madeleine Kleiner, former general counsel of Hilton * Karl Krapek, former president and COO of
United Technologies United Technologies Corporation (UTC) was an American multinational conglomerate headquartered in Farmington, Connecticut. It researched, developed, and manufactured products in numerous areas, including aircraft engines, aerospace systems ...
* Graham N. Robinson, president of Stanley Industrial, a business segment of
Stanley Black & Decker Stanley Black & Decker, Inc., formerly known as The Stanley Works, is a Fortune 500 American manufacturer of industrial tools and household hardware and provider of security products. Headquartered in the greater Hartford city of New Britain, ...
*
Gary Roughead Gary Roughead ( "rough head"; born July 15, 1951) is a former United States Navy officer who served as the 29th Chief of Naval Operations from September 29, 2007 to September 22, 2011. He previously served as Commander, United States Fleet Forces ...
, former
Chief of Naval Operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the professional head of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the secretary of the Navy. In a separate capacity as a memb ...
*
Thomas Schoewe Thomas M. Schoewe (born 1952) was the chief financial officer and executive vice president of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. until January 2011. He was with the company since taking his positions in January 2000. Prior to joining Wal-Mart he was with Blac ...
, former CFO of
Wal-Mart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquarter ...
*
Jim Turley James S. Turley is an American business executive. He was chairman and chief executive officer of Ernst & Young from 2001 to 2013. He was the National President of the Boy Scouts of America from 2018 to 2019. Early life and education Turley r ...
, former chairman and CEO of
Ernst & Young Ernst & Young Global Limited, trade name EY, is a multinational professional services partnership headquartered in London, England. EY is one of the largest professional services networks in the world. Along with Deloitte, KPMG and Pricewaterh ...
*
Mark Welsh Mark Anthony Welsh III (born January 26, 1953) is Dean of the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University and a retired United States Air Force four-star general. Prior to his current role, he served as Chief of Staff of ...
, former
Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force The chief of staff of the Air Force (acronym: CSAF, or AF/CC) is a statutory office () held by a general in the United States Air Force, and as such is the principal military advisor to the secretary of the Air Force on matter pertaining to th ...


Corporate headquarters

Since 2011, Northrop Grumman's headquarters are in
West Falls Church, Virginia West Falls Church is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population was 29,207 at the 2010 census. Before 2010, West Falls Church was officially named Jefferson. Outside of the Jefferson Village neighbo ...
(previously Jefferson),
unincorporated Unincorporated may refer to: * Unincorporated area, land not governed by a local municipality * Unincorporated entity, a type of organization * Unincorporated territories of the United States, territories under U.S. jurisdiction, to which Congress ...
Fairfax County, Virginia Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax, is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is part of Northern Virginia and borders both the city of Alexandria and Arlington County and forms part of the suburban ring of Washington, D.C. ...
.Northrop Grumman Selects Falls Church Location for New Corporate Office (NYSE:NOC)
" Northrop Grumman. July 12, 2010. Retrieved: September 6, 2011. " ..980 Fairview Park Drive, Falls Church, Va. ..
Prior to 2010, the company was headquartered in
Century City, Los Angeles Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of Downtown Los Angeles, Century City is one of ...
, but announced plans on January 4, 2010 to move to the
Washington Metropolitan Area The Washington metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the National Capital Region, is the metropolitan area centered on Washington, D.C. The metropolitan area includes all of Washington, D.C. and parts of the states of Maryland, Virgin ...
by 2011 to be closer to government customers.Crowe, Deborah.
Northrop to Move Corporate Office to D.C.
" ''
Los Angeles Business Journal The ''Los Angeles Business Journal'', established in 1979, is a weekly newspaper and online news source in Los Angeles, California, which provides coverage of local business news. According to the ''Journals website, it has a weekly print circul ...
''. January 4, 2010. Retrieved January 10, 2010.
CEO Wesley Bush stated that the company needed to be located close to
Capitol Hill Capitol Hill, in addition to being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington, D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues. It is one of the ...
lawmakers and officials from intelligence and military communities.Proctor, Charles.
Northrop Flew Under the Radar
" ''
Los Angeles Business Journal The ''Los Angeles Business Journal'', established in 1979, is a weekly newspaper and online news source in Los Angeles, California, which provides coverage of local business news. According to the ''Journals website, it has a weekly print circul ...
''. January 11, 2010. Retrieved: January 10, 2010.
Northrop Grumman considered sites in
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
and in suburbs in
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
and
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
. The ''
Los Angeles Business Journal The ''Los Angeles Business Journal'', established in 1979, is a weekly newspaper and online news source in Los Angeles, California, which provides coverage of local business news. According to the ''Journals website, it has a weekly print circul ...
'' wrote "In a way, the announcement was not a surprise" due to the trend of aerospace companies moving to the DC area, the fact that the new CEO is from West Virginia and that CEOs often move corporate headquarters to places that they want the headquarters located. A Los Angeles area economic development consultant described the move announcement as a "structural failure at all levels for Los Angeles County." District of Columbia economic development officials were "pitching the city's urban hipness and proximity to Capitol Hill power brokers" to Northrop Grumman. Maryland promoted its highly educated workforce and its large number of federal facilities, while Virginia marketed itself as a state with relatively low taxes. In July 2010, the company announced its purchase of an existing building in Fairfax County and its move in summer 2011. It planned to consolidate its Century City headquarters and its existing
Arlington County, Virginia Arlington County is a County (United States), county in the Virginia, Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the Washington, D.C., District of Co ...
, offices into the new headquarters. It employed about 40,000 in the Washington DC metropolitan area, including DC and surrounding Maryland and Virginia.


Accolades and criticism

Northrop Grumman was named
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
's Company of the Year in 2002. Forbes's announcement credited the company with "master ngthe art of innovation." As of 2019, the company is included on
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
' list of "America's Best Large Employers". Since 2005 Northrop Grumman credits itself with sponsoring educational programs and donating thousands of dollars to various charities. Many members of the U.S. government have attended company events and spoken highly of the company and its contributions, for example
John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...
. In December 2007, Northrop Grumman Corporation was awarded the
Ron Brown Award The Ron Brown Award for Corporate Leadership is a U.S. presidential honor to recognize companies "for the exemplary quality of their relationships with employees and communities". It is presented to companies that "have demonstrated a deep commitm ...
for Corporate Leadership, the only presidential award recognizing companies for outstanding achievement in employee and community relations.


Environmental record

In 2000, Northrop Grumman was designated a Primary Responsible Party under federal
Superfund Superfund is a United States federal environmental remediation program established by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). The program is administered by the United States Environmental Pro ...
laws at 13 hazardous waste sites and under state Superfund laws at eight sites. The corporation has also been linked to 52 superfund
toxic waste Toxic waste is any unwanted material in all forms that can cause harm (e.g. by being inhaled, swallowed, or absorbed through the skin). Mostly generated by industry, consumer products like televisions, computers, and phones contain toxic chemi ...
sites. Based on 2008 data, Northrop Grumman was the 62nd-largest corporate producer of
air pollution in the United States Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials into the atmosphere, causing harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or damaging ecosystems. Air pollution can cause health problems inc ...
, per the
Political Economy Research Institute The Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) is an independent research unit at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. According to its mission statement, it "...promotes human and ecological well-being through our original research". PERI was ...
of the
University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, it ...
. Northrop Grumman facilities released more than 23,798 pounds of toxic chemicals into the air in that year. In 2002, the Bethpage Community Park in
Bethpage, New York Bethpage (formerly known as Central Park) is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located within the Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 16,429 at the 2010 United States Cen ...
, owned by the company until the 1960s, was closed due to soil contamination with
polychlorinated biphenyls Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are highly carcinogenic chemical compounds, formerly used in industrial and consumer products, whose production was banned in the United States by the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, Toxic Substances Contro ...
(PCBs). The company dumped cadmium, arsenic, chromium-tainted sludge, solvents, paints and PCBs at the site between 1949 and 1962. Additionally, two toxic chemical plumes centered under Bethpage Community Park and other surrounding land formerly owned by Grumman or Northrop Grumman have spread to under neighboring houses. In November 2013, the Bethpage Water District filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against Northrop Grumman in Federal Court for the Eastern District of New York for contaminating the groundwater in Bethpage. In 2003, the company was among 84 parties with which the
United States Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it be ...
, the
U.S. Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...
, and the state of
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
reached an estimated US$15 million settlement for the rehabilitation of the Mattiace Petrochemical Company Superfund site in Glen Cove,
Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
. In the same year, Northrop Grumman agreed to pay $33,214 after EPA inspectors found
hazardous waste Hazardous waste is waste that has substantial or potential threats to public health or the environment. Hazardous waste is a type of dangerous goods. They usually have one or more of the following hazardous traits: ignitability, reactivity, co ...
violations at the Capistrano test site. As a response to many of the previous claims, the company has stood up as an organization for social responsibility. In 2008, Northrop Grumman launched its Environmental Sustainability program and an EHS Leadership Council, to advance its commitment to environmental performance both internally and externally. The Greenhouse Gas Inventory Project was launched to accurately quantify company-wide greenhouse gas emissions and to reduce the carbon footprint of Northrop Grumman operations, in anticipation of upcoming regulations. In October 2010 the company was named one of Computerworld's Top 12 Green-IT Organizations for its large-scale data center migration effort. In 2019, Northrop Grumman was named the US's largest corporate contributor to water pollution by the
Political Economy Research Institute The Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) is an independent research unit at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. According to its mission statement, it "...promotes human and ecological well-being through our original research". PERI was ...
of the
University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, it ...
.


Political contributions and governmental ties

From 1990 to 2002, Northrop Grumman contributed $8.5 million to federal campaigns. According to PAC summary data compiled by Source Watch, the company gave US$1,011,260 to federal candidates in the 2005–2006 election cycle, compared to $10,612,837 given by all defense contractors in the same cycle. This donation amount was only behind that of General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin in the defense industry. The majority of the contributions, 63%, went to Republicans. Former Northrop Grumman Electronics Systems chief
James G. Roche James Gerard Roche (born December 16, 1939) is an American politician. He served as the 20th Secretary of the Air Force, serving from January 20, 2001 to January 20, 2005. Prior to serving as secretary, Roche served in the United States Navy for ...
served as Secretary of the Air Force for two years under George W. Bush. Roche would eventually be nominated to head the Army, but withdrew his nomination among accusations of mismanaging a contract with
Boeing The Boeing Company () is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, telecommunications equipment, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product ...
and of failing to properly handle the Air Force sexual assault scandals of 2003. According to
CorpWatch CorpWatch is a research group based in Berkeley, California, USA. Its stated mission is to expose corporate malfeasance and to advocate for multinational corporate accountability and transparency. Recent Projects * Crocodyl: Pratap Chatterjee ...
, "at least seven former officials, consultants, or shareholders of Northrop Grumman" have held posts "in the Bush administration...including Deputy Secretary of Defense
Paul Wolfowitz Paul Dundes Wolfowitz (born December 22, 1943) is an American political scientist and diplomat who served as the 10th President of the World Bank, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia, and former dean of Johns Hopkins SA ...
, Vice-Presidential Chief of Staff I.
Lewis Libby Irve Lewis "Scooter" Libby (born August 22, 1950) is an American lawyer and former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney known for his high-profile indictment. From 2001 to 2005, Libby held the offices of Assistant to the Vice President ...
, Pentagon Comptroller Dov S. Zakheim, and
Sean O'Keefe Sean Charles O'Keefe (born January 27, 1956) is a university professor at Syracuse University Maxwell School, former chairman of Airbus Group, Inc., former Secretary of the Navy, former Administrator of NASA, and former chancellor of Louisiana S ...
, director of NASA." Wolfowitz and Libby have both since left the government amid scandals."Company Profile: Northrop Grumman."
''Corpwatch''. Retrieved: December 6, 2014.
The company engages third-party lobbying firms in jurisdictions where it has interests. For example, in South Australia it works with lobbying firm CMAX Communications.


Controversies

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Northrop was the target of several high-profile criminal and civil cases."US: Court Documents Unsealed in Northrop Grumman Case."
''CorpWatch'', April 22, 2004. Retrieved: December 5, 2014.
In 1995, Robert Ferro, an employee for TRW Inc., a company Northrop Grumman acquired in 2002, discovered that satellite components manufactured for the U.S. Air Force (USAF) were faulty and likely to fail in operation. TRW suppressed Ferro's report of the problem and hid the information from the USAF, even after a satellite in space equipped with the faulty components experienced serious anomalies. Ferro later sued Northrop Grumman in federal court under the federal
whistle-blower A whistleblower (also written as whistle-blower or whistle blower) is a person, often an employee, who reveals information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe or fraudulent. Whi ...
law. In 1999, the company was sued for knowingly giving the Navy defective aircraft. This suit sought $210 million in damages. Ten years later, on April 2, 2009, Northrop Grumman agreed to pay $325 million to settle the suit. Ferro was awarded $48.8 million of the settlement. Northrop Grumman stated, "it believed that TRW had 'acted properly under its contracts' and that the company had substantive defenses against the claims." In 2001, federal investigators probed NG for fraud of more than $100 million, systematic overcharging for radar jammers and other high-tech devices used in the B-1 bomber, the F-15 fighter and the B-2 Stealth bomber.Corfman, Thomas A
"Feds probe Northrop in defense fraud case."
''Chicago Tribune'', August 30, 2001. Retrieved: December 5, 2014.
In 2003, the company was sued for overcharging the U.S. government for space projects in the 1990s. Northrop Grumman paid $111.2 million to settle out of court."Northrop Grumman pays $111 million to settle qui tam case against recent acquisition, TRW."
''Phillips and Cohen Press Release'', June 9, 2003.
From August 25 to September 2, 2010,
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
's computer system operated by NG, under a $2.4 billion contract, experienced an outage which resulted in around 45,000 citizens not being able to renew their drivers licenses prior to their expiration. Computer systems for 26 of the state's 89 agencies were affected and Governor
Bob McDonnell Robert Francis McDonnell (born June 15, 1954) is an American attorney, businessman, politician, and former military officer who served as the 71st governor of Virginia from 2010 to 2014. His career ended after his corruption scandal and convic ...
announced that some data may have been permanently lost. In 2010 Northrop Grumman apologized for the outage, and agreed to fund an investigation. In 2012, controversy began over Northrop Grumman's Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System (IBCS), when it missed its first deadline. Since then, the system has had a number of controversial developments. In 2016, a Director, Operational Test and Evaluation found a number of major faults with the system, concluding it was "neither mature nor stable".


International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) violations

U.S. State Department investigators found that
Litton Industries Litton Industries was a large defense contractor in the United States named after inventor Charles Litton Sr. During the 1960s, the company began acquiring many unrelated firms and became one of the largest conglomerates in the United States. ...
, a subsidiary acquired by Northrop Grumman in 2000, had provided portions of
source code In computing, source code, or simply code, is any collection of code, with or without comments, written using a human-readable programming language, usually as plain text. The source code of a program is specially designed to facilitate the wo ...
used by guidance and navigation system interfaces aboard
Air Force One Air Force One is the official air traffic control designated call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. In common parlance, the term is used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modified and used ...
to a company in Russia in 1998. Northrop Grumman agreed to pay a $15 million fine for 110 violations, occurring between September 1998 and November 1998, of the
Arms Export Control Act The Arms Export Control Act of 1976 (Title II of , codified at ) gives the President of the United States the authority to control the import and export of defense articles and defense services. The H.R. 13680 legislation was passed by the 94th ...
and the
International Traffic in Arms Regulations International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) is a United States regulatory regime to restrict and control the export of defense and military related Military technology, technologies to safeguard National security of the United States, U.S. ...
(ITAR). Additionally, documents filed by the State Department state that between 1994 and 2003, Northrop Grumman failed to notify the U.S. State Department about the computer guidance systems also being transferred to
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,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
,
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
,
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
and
Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...
.Ryan, Jason
"Air Force One Guidance Systems Allegedly Sent to Russia."
''
ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
'', April 18, 2008.


See also

*
IMETS Integrated Meteorological System (AN/TMQ-40 IMETS), developed by Northrop Grumman is the meteorological component of the Intelligence and Electronic Warfare (IEW) an element of the Army Battle Command System (ABCS). IMETS provides Army commanders ...
*
Northrop Grumman RQ-180 The Northrop Grumman RQ-180 is an American stealth unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) surveillance aircraft intended for contested airspace. , there had been no images or statements released, but growing evidence points to the existence of the RQ-18 ...
Unmanned Aircraft System *
Top 100 contractors of the U.S. federal government The Top 100 Contractors Report is a list developed annually by the U.S. General Services Administration as part of its tracking of U.S. federal government procurement, of the "Top 100" contractors in the United States. In fiscal year 2005, the f ...
– $30.1 billion in FY2018


References


Notes


Bibliography

* Parker, Dana T. ''Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II''. Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .


External links

*
Interview with Northrop Grumman CEO, Feb 12, 2006.
* {{Authority control Aerospace companies of the United States Aircraft manufacturers of the United States Defense companies of the United States Electronics companies of the United States Engineering companies of the United States Shipbuilding companies of the United States Manufacturing companies based in Virginia Companies based in Fairfax County, Virginia Unmanned aerial vehicle manufacturers American companies established in 1994 Electronics companies established in 1994 Manufacturing companies established in 1994 Technology companies established in 1994 1994 establishments in Virginia Manufacturing companies based in Los Angeles Technology companies based in Greater Los Angeles Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange Collier Trophy recipients