Sargent Fletcher

Sargent Fletcher is a subsidiary company of Cobham plc. which makes aircraft equipment, including aerial refueling systems, external fuel tanks, and special purpose pods.

Sargent Fletcher

Industry	Aerospace
Predecessor	Fletcher Aviation
Founded	1940
Headquarters	9400 Flair Dr. El Monte, California , USA
Key people	Ron Winkler, VP
Number of employees	150 (2010)[1]
Website	www.cobham.com

History

Sargent Fletcher was founded as Fletcher Aviation in 1940^[2] and bought by Cobham in 1994.

According to a 1991 report the company submitted to regional air quality officials, the company's El Monte chrome-plating plant showed the highest cancer-risk level of any business in the San Gabriel Valley.^[3] It was later closed in 2010.

Customers

The KC-130J was supposed to be equipped with Flight Refuelling Ltd's Mk32B-901E hose-and-drogue units, but operational problems meant that the aircraft went into production using equipment from Sargent Fletcher instead.^[4]

Aircraft using Sargent Fletcher equipment include:^[2]

• Boeing 707^[5]
• Dassault Mirage 5
• Douglas A-4 Skyhawk
• Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon
• Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
• Lockheed C-130 Hercules / HC-130 / KC-130 / MC-130
• Lockheed L-1011 TriStar
• McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle
• McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet
• McDonnell Douglas KC-10A
• Northrop F-5
• Panavia Tornado

References

1. BNET Sargent Fletcher Company Profile
2. "Sargent Fletcher Inc". Jane's. Jane's Aircraft Upgrades. November 3, 2008. Archived from the original on 2012-09-13.
3. Sullivan, Deborah (1994-10-27). "Health Effects of Sargent-Fletcher Plant Are Hard to Discern: Chrome-plating factory reported toxic emissions at the highest level in the area. But the company disputes the data, citing smog as a more probable reason for neighbor's breathing ailments". Los Angeles Times.
4. Navy Expects KC-130J Deliveries Under Revised Refueling Pod Plan Defense Daily, April 11, 2003 ^{[dead link‍]}
5. "FAQ". Omega Aerial Refueling Services.