A Century of Flight: CSC’s Aerospace Legacy
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| The Wright brothers and the Wright Flyer |
When Orville and Wilbur Wright launched the first powered flight on December 17, 1903, little did the brothers know they were also launching a new era in history. A century after that 12-second flight over the sand dunes of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, airplanes have revolutionized the way people travel the globe, fight wars and explore the universe.
Similarly, when Roy Nutt and Fletcher Jones founded CSC more than half a century later, they had no way of knowing that the company would grow into a global information technology corporation, one with deep roots in the aviation and aerospace industry. In 1959, fewer than 4,000 computers existed in the world. Yet information technology eventually would transform aerospace, and CSC would play an important role in that transformation.
"The 100th anniversary of flight is an excellent occasion to look back at CSC’s contributions to the aerospace and aviation industry, and at the industry’s contribution to our growth," said CSC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Van Honeycutt.
CSC wins early aerospace contracts
CSC entered the aerospace industry in 1961 with a contract for support work at the Space Flight Operations Facility of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California. Together, CSC and JPL created the computer system that guided and tracked telemetry data from unmanned lunar and planetary probes. This data, together with other JPL research, was a major force for the U.S. space effort.
Since that JPL contract, CSC’s contributions to the aerospace industry have been as varied as the company’s aerospace clients (timeline).
Former CSC president and chief operating officer Pete Boykin, who joined CSC in 1966 after working at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama, believes that CSC’s diverse clients have benefited from the expertise CSC gained from its early aerospace work, most notably for NASA.
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| A footprint on the moon, left by the Apollo 11 crew |
"Our partnership with NASA has been one of the most valuable assets that CSC has had over its history. With NASA, we gained experience in the application of technology for large, complex programs, and we developed a contingent of key people who knew how to manage those programs," he explained.
Boykin believes that one of CSC’s most important accomplishments has been the company’s work at Marshall Space Flight Center, which developed the Saturn V rocket that launched the crew of Apollo 11 on its journey to the moon. CSC began to work with Marshall in 1966, winning a 15-year engineering support and facilities management contract just before the first Saturn V launch vehicle test flight. "There was concern in NASA that changing contractors would have an impact on that launch," recalled Boykin, who was working for Marshall when CSC was awarded the contract. "But CSC took over that contract and supported the launch flawlessly, and that was a thrill for everybody that worked there."
CSC provides array of services
During the decades following the Saturn and Apollo successes, CSC expanded its role in aerospace, signing contracts with other NASA centers. These centers include Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, the National Space Technology Laboratories in Mississippi, NASA Ames Research Center in California, Kennedy Space Center in Florida and Johnson Space Center in Texas. Over CSC’s history, the company has supported such high-profile NASA projects as the Space Shuttle program, the Hubble Space Telescope and the International Space Station. CSC has done everything from handling base operations to placing a payload specialist, Dr. Ron Parise, in two space shuttle missions.
Parise logged more than 614 hours and 10.6 million miles in space on the NASA Space Shuttle Columbia in 1990 and on the Space Shuttle Endeavour in 1995. Parise continues to support NASA today, most recently exploring innovative ways to use Internet technology for improving spacecraft-to-ground communications. (Read about CSC’s other astronaut, Mark Brown.)
CSC has built upon its experience with NASA to support other government clients. During the 1970s, CSC embarked upon ambitious programs with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Its FAA work includes development and support of systems crucial to helping air traffic controllers maintain safe aircraft separation and manage overall traffic flows.
CSC expands into commercial realm
CSC’s extensive experience with government agencies led to the company’s first commercial IT outsourcing agreement in 1991 and the largest outsourcing deal of its time, a 10-year, $3 billion agreement with General Dynamics (GD). As part of the agreement, CSC took over computer support for the assembly process at General Dynamics’ mile-long Air Force Plant 4 facility in Fort Worth, Texas.
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BAE’s Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jet
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In the years that followed, CSC was able to build upon its newfound talent base to support other commercial aerospace clients. These clients include Raytheon, Pratt & Whitney, Pratt & Whitney Canada, Boeing and BAE Systems (formerly British Aerospace), CSC’s first major outsourcing contract in Europe. The ongoing relationship has CSC managing BAE Systems’ IT operations. CSC worked with BAE Systems to improve the manufacturing and engineering processes supporting the client’s Eurofighter program.
Industry faces new challenges
CSC is helping its clients face current international challenges in the aviation market, which are due in part to the terrorist attacks against the United States in September 2001, the SARS outbreak and an economic slowdown. The effects are being felt by many of CSC’s clients, including government agencies.
Harry Part, vice president of CSC’s FAA program, noted that the FAA’s priorities shifted after the terrorist attacks of September 11. "People aren’t traveling as much. Security is now the main priority, and capacity, which used to be the main focus, is not as much of a problem anymore," he said. He added that CSC can draw upon its IT expertise to support all of the FAA’s security initiatives. In 2002, CSC won a contract with the FAA’s Office of Information Systems Security to support planning and implementation of information systems security throughout the agency.
NASA is facing new challenges, due in part to its early successes in the space race. In the Apollo era, NASA’s main goal was to put a man on the moon and return him to earth safely. Once that task was accomplished, NASA grew to support multiple objectives. Today, NASA is under increasing government pressure to streamline its operations and reduce costs. In response to that pressure, CSC is helping NASA support its "One NASA" initiative, which the agency introduced to better coordinate its 10 centers.
CSC poised to meet future client needs
Other government agencies also are changing their business structures to reduce costs and improve efficiency. For example, civil and defense agencies are turning increasingly to private contractors to handle certain functions. CSC management perceived this trend and acquired DynCorp in March 2003 to bolster CSC’s ability to support government needs, especially in aviation.
Throughout its history, DynCorp had supported commercial, military and civil aircraft. Its Contract Field Teams have worked for more than 50 years performing on-site maintenance services for aviation and weapon systems. The former DynCorp units also provide aviation services for the aircraft fleets that serve U.S. government officials and NASA.
"We have touched just about every aircraft platform that has ever been built. We take care of the national leadership, all the people in our space program and all the people in our military programs. That’s a pretty good legacy," said Ben Medley, president of CSC’s DynCorp Technical Services.
CSC executives note that CSC’s acquisition of DynCorp is just one example of the company adapting to meet the evolving needs of its aerospace clients. "One can only imagine where the industry will be in another 100 years," noted Honeycutt. "CSC has been very fortunate to be able to participate in some of the most important aerospace programs in history. With our considerable experience and expertise, we look forward to seeing what the future brings — and being there to help produce operational and financial results for our clients."
Photo credits:
Photo of Wright Flyer courtesy of Special Collections & Archives Department, Wright State University.
Photo of Apollo 11 footprint courtesy of NASA.
Photo of Eurofighter Typhoon courtesy of BAE Systems.
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