FORT WORTH, Texas, August 19th, 1998 -- In aircraft manufacturing and operations, "FOD" — which stands for "foreign object debris" and causes "foreign object damage" — can be a danger to the aircraft and also life threatening to the crew and passengers.

In response to this danger, Fort Worth, Texas, was the site of this year’s 19th National Aerospace FOD Prevention Conference, co-hosted by National Aerospace FOD Prevention, Inc., and Lockheed Martin Tactical Aircraft Systems. The conference was held from August 11-13, with the conference theme: "Put Your Brand on FOD Prevention."

Conference attendance was at an all-time high, including 850 attendees from the U.S. military, commercial airlines, aerospace suppliers and airplane manufacturers. This compares to 725 attendees at last year’s conference, which was the previous all-time high attendance record. "We are gratified to have so many attendees representing a broad cross-section of individuals and organizations that are in critical positions to reduce and eliminate FOD within the aerospace industry," said Eulaine Eri, this year’s president of National Aerospace FOD Prevention, Inc. and FOD prevention manager for Lockheed Martin Tactical Aircraft Systems. "I can remember 10 years ago when attendance was only 200."

The bulk of the conference consisted of interactive learning sessions where experts from across the industry shared their experiences and know-how in FOD prevention techniques. A highlight of the conference took place on Wednesday, August 12, when more than 600 attendees took a three-hour tour of Lockheed Martin’s F-16 manufacturing plant and flight line, which included hands-on demonstrations of the plant’s FOD prevention program throughout its production process.

Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth plant produces the F-16 for the U.S. Air Force and a number of foreign countries and is leading Lockheed Martin’s Joint Strike Fighter team. The company also produces the F-22’s mid-fuselage section, is responsible for various subsystems of the air dominance fighter and is participating in the production of Japan’s F-2 fighter, which incorporates extensive use of advanced materials technologies.