Fairchild Systems

{{about|the former division of Fairchild Camera and Instrument|other systems and companies|Fairchild (disambiguation)}}

Fairchild Systems was a United States defense contractor which is now part of BAE Systems Electronics, Intelligence & Support. A descendant of Fairchild Camera and Instrument, the San Francisco Chronicle described Fairchild Systems as "one of the legendary names of Silicon Valley" and that in "the late 1960s, [its] Bay Area operations were the training ground for the engineers who went on to found Intel and other top semiconductor companies."{{cite news |first=Tom |last= Abate |title=Lockheed Shakes Up Operations; Key exec promoted, firm may trim units |work=The San Francisco Chronicle |publisher=The Chronicle Publishing |date=1999-09-28 }}

History

Fairchild Weston Systems was acquired by Loral Corporation in mid-1989. The group was renamed as the Loral Fairchild Systems divisions of Loral Corp.{{cite news|title=Loral picks three to head renamed Fairchild Weston units |work=Aerospace Daily |publisher=McGraw-Hill |date=1989-09-01 }}

On 22 April 1996, Lockheed Martin completed the acquisition of Loral Corporation's defense electronics and system integration businesses, which included Fairchild, for $9.1 billion.{{cite news |first=John |last=Mintz |title=Lockheed-Martin Loral Merger May Mean a Loss of Business; McDonnell Douglas Threatens to Cancel Billions in Contracts|newspaper=The Washington Post |date=1996-04-23 }} The company became Lockheed Fairchild Systems.

In 2000, Lockheed Martin grouped Fairchild with Sanders Associates and Lockheed Martin Space Electronics & Communications under the Lockheed Martin Aerospace Electronic Systems division. BAE Systems agreed to acquire the division in July 2000 and completed its acquisition on 27 November.{{cite news |title=Contract for BAE|work=The Times |publisher=Times Newspapers |date=2000-11-28 }}{{cite news |first=Carl|last=Parreault|title=British aerospace firm buys Sanders |work=The Union Leader|date=2004-07-14 }}

References