Lockheed Martin [LMT] won the Navy’s contract award on Friday for the production of the Mk 41 vertical launching system (VLS), defeating BAE Systems
and snatching up both components of the competition, meaning the company will construct the modules and perform the electrical work.
The initial contract award is valued at $235 million and could climb to $356 million if the Navy exercises all of the options.
BAE Systems had been the incumbent for the construction of the modules since a fiscal 2010 award, with Lockheed Martin being responsible for the electrical side. Now Lockheed Martin has taken both tasks in what is a clear blow for BAE Systems.
The VLS is installed on Navy cruisers and destroyers and launches a vast array of missiles, including the Tomahawk cruise missile for land attack, multiple types of the Standard Missile for air-theater and ballistic missile defense, and the Anti-Submarine ROCket, or ASROC.
Lockheed Martin had been building the VLS since 1993 with BAE Systems as a subcontractor until the Navy began separately contracting the major component work in 2010.