Aeronutronic
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Aeronutronic was a defense related division of Ford Aerospace, owned by Ford Motor Company, and based in Newport Beach, Orange County, California.
The {{convert|99|acres}} Engineering and Research Center campus was located on Jamboree Road at Ford Road, overlooking Balboa Bay and the Santa Catalina Strait of the Pacific Ocean in Newport Beach.[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-01-14-fi-390-story.html Los Angeles Times.com: "Ford Aerospace Treated for Years Like a Stepchild : Defense: The auto maker has announced plans to sell its Newport Beach-based unit. But critics say the firm was abandoned long ago."]; 14 January 1990.[http://www.newportbeachca.gov/PLN/MAP_DOCUMENTS/PC_TEXT/PC_24_Aeronutronic_Ford.pdf Newport Beach.gov: Aeronutronic Ford (Planned Community) District];by Planning Division Staff, Community Development Department; 18 December 2013. The facility's master plan and main buildings were designed by Modernist architect William Pereira in 1958.{{cite book|author=Mathew Aitchison|title=The Architecture of Industry: Changing Paradigms in Industrial Building and Planning|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qeq_CwAAQBAJ&pg=PA69|year=2016|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-317-04480-2|page=69}}
History
The company was established in 1956 as Aeronutronic Systems, Inc.
The company provided major support for the development of Project Space Track (1957-1961).
Philco Aeronutronic
In 1961, Ford purchased Philco and merged the two companies into Philco Aeronutronic in 1963. It became NASA's primary communications equipment vendor during the 1960s, also building the consoles in the Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston.
Its Space Systems division in Palo Alto built satellites, ground stations, and sophisticated tracking and control systems for the military. In 1988, the unit received a contract to build the next generation of Intelsat communications satellites.
In 1978, Ford received its first contract for a prototype of an Army air defense gun system, the Sergeant York Gun. After persistent technical problems and some $1.3 billion in development costs, in 1985 Defense Secretary Caspar W. Weinberger canceled the program. Around 1,300 Aeronutronic workers were laid off as a result.
Many portions of the Philco side of the company were sold off in the early 1970s. By 1975, all that was left was the original Aeronutronic divisions. These were renamed Ford Aerospace and Communications Corporation in December 1976, and then Ford Aerospace Corporation in January 1988.
Space Systems/Loral
In October 1990, Ford Aerospace and Aeronutronic defense plant were sold by Ford Motor Company to Loral to become Space Systems/Loral.[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-07-24-fi-851-story.html Los Angeles Times.com: "Newport Plant Put in Limbo by Ford Sale : Defense industry: With the aerospace subsidiary under new ownership, the future of its Aeronutronic division in Orange County is up in the air." (July 24, 1990)].
In 1996, the Loral Space & Communications defense electronics and system integration businesses were acquired by Lockheed Martin.
The Newport Beach plant was demolished, and rezoned for residential development.
Products
- AGM-88 HARM (subcontractor)
- AIM-9 Sidewinder
- AN/AAS-38 (F/A-18 FLIR)
- Have Dash
- LGM-118 Peacekeeper (subcontractor)
- LGM-30 Minuteman (subcontractor)
- MGM-51 Shillelagh
- MIM-72 Chaparral
- Pave Knife
- Pave Tack
- UGM-73 Poseidon (subcontractor)
- Trident (missile) (subcontractor)
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://ucispace.lib.uci.edu/handle/10575/6633 University of California Irvine Library, Online Archives: "Aerial view of Ford Aeronutronics Plant in 1960"]
- [https://www.flickr.com/photos/kamaaina56/12393113243 Flickr.com: "Aerial view of Ford Ford Aerospace & Communications & Newport Beach c.1983]
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Category:Aerospace companies of the United States
Category:Former defense companies of the United States
Category:Technology companies based in Greater Los Angeles
Category:Companies based in Newport Beach, California
Category:Loral Space & Communications
Category:Manufacturing companies established in 1956
Category:Technology companies established in 1956
Category:Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1990
Category:Technology companies disestablished in 1990
Category:1956 establishments in California
Category:1990 disestablishments in California
Category:Defunct companies based in Greater Los Angeles
Category:Buildings and structures in Newport Beach, California
Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1958
Category:Demolished buildings and structures in California
Category:William Pereira buildings
Category:Defunct manufacturing companies based in California