AVIATION WEEK Announces A&D Industry's Leading Annual Rankings: 2009 Top-Performing...

AVIATION WEEK Announces A&D Industry's Leading Annual Rankings: 2009
Top-Performing Companies

Lockheed Martin, Precision Castparts, FLIR Systems and Ceradyne receive top
rankings for operational performance

NEW YORK, June 1 /PRNewswire/ -- AVIATION WEEK has released the results of its
Top-Performing Companies (TPC) Study, the aerospace and defense (A&D)
industry's leading annual rankings and competitive analysis, which identifies
Lockheed Martin, Precision Castparts, FLIR Systems and Ceradyne as the top
companies for 2009. A series of articles and ranking tables are available in
this week's issue of Aviation Week & Space Technology and at
AviationWeek.com/TPC. The winning companies will receive awards during the
Paris Air Show at AVIATION WEEK's Chalet on June 17.

To read the articles and for complete rankings on the 79 companies in this
year's study, extensive data going back 10 years on the 50 largest companies,
commentaries, podcasts, and graphics, go to the TPC microsite at
AviationWeek.com/TPC. Sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers, the microsite
contains the most extensive online coverage of the TPC study in its 13-year
history. A companion online analytics tool, the Top-Performing Companies
Benchmarking Tool, is also available to enterprise subscribers and allows
companies to regularly monitor performance and set competitive goals.

Launched in 1996, AVIATION WEEK's TPC Study identifies relative strengths and
weaknesses in companies' operational performance and evaluates how well they
are executing business strategies. Proprietary metrics have been refined over
the past 13 years with input from industry leaders to include scores in four
equally weighted performance categories: Return on Invested Capital, Earnings
Momentum, Asset Management, and Financial Health.

"Something real is going on here, and you can see it in the results of this
year's Top-Performing Companies study," says AVIATION WEEK Editor-in-Chief
Anthony L. Velocci, Jr. in his TPC overview. "Contractors are continuing to
apply 'lean' initiatives to their operations,...the industry as a whole is
getting progressively more productive, [and] the best-run companies are
demonstrating they know how to maintain world-class performance."

Each of the top companies is the leader in its category, based on A&D revenue
for the 2008-09 fiscal year:

-- Ranked no. 1 in the "Revenue Greater Than $20 Billion" group
for the second consecutive year, Lockheed Martin is characterized as
"firing on all cylinders," capitalizing on its success at
integrating a disparate collection of businesses and reflecting
consistent improvement in all sectors.
-- In the "$5-20 Billion" category, Precision Castparts benefits
from its strong culture of accountability and a return on invested
capital to match, commanding premium prices for its specialized
products.
-- In the "$1-5 Billion" category, FLIR Systems is viewed as a
"cash machine," generating operating margins of 40% and
maintaining its highly competitive position in the defense market.

-- Top ranked among small companies ($250 Million - $1 Billion) for the
second year in a row, Ceradyne continues to leverage robust military
demand for its advanced ceramic armor and products.

"Although 2008 was a banner year for the A&D industry, 2009 and 2010 will be
very challenging," says AVIATION WEEK Senior Business Editor Joseph C.
Anselmo. "The results of this year's Top-Performing Companies Study provide
clues about how well A&D companies are positioned to withstand the tough times
that are descending on the industry."

For further commentary, Joseph Anselmo can be reached at
Joe_Anselmo@aviationweek.com.

About AVIATION WEEK
AVIATION WEEK, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, is the largest
multimedia information and services provider to the global aviation, aerospace
and defense industries, and includes the publications Aviation Week & Space
Technology, Defense Technology International, Business & Commercial Aviation,
Overhaul & Maintenance, ShowNews, Aviation Daily, Aerospace Daily & Defense
Report, and the World Aerospace Database. The group's website,
http://www.aviationweek.com, offers the industry's most reliable news,
information, search and online community tools. Premium content services
include the Aviation Week Intelligence Network, MRO Prospector, and the
Top-Performing Companies Benchmarking Tool. The group also produces prominent
conferences, exhibitions and management forums around the world.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies
Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading global
information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial
services, education and business information markets through leading brands
such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power
and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries.
Sales in 2008 were $6.4 billion. Additional information is available at
www.mcgraw-hill.com.

SOURCE AVIATION WEEK

Joe D'Andrea, Director of Sales Development & Marketing, AVIATION WEEK,
+1-212-904-3780, joseph_dandrea@aviationweek.com; or Lisa Jaycox,
Communications Specialist, The McGraw-Hill Companies Information & Media,
+1-212-512-3272, lisa_jaycox@mcgraw-hill.com