GMD System Operations And Sustainment At Stake; Missile Defense Agency Contract Sought

Lockheed Martin Corp. [LMT] will take on The Boeing Co. [BA] in a fight for an operations and sustainment contract for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) system, which is installed in Alaska and California to take down incoming missiles launched by North Korea.

Those companies are the two largest defense contractors on the planet. Boeing, of Chicago, currently leads the GMD development and production program.

Lockheed officials recently toured GMD sites that are the workplace of many Boeing employees to assess future needs.

Based in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed announced it is focused on MDA plans for a competitive contract award for the GMD operations and sustainment work.

"Lockheed Martin is committed to providing efficient and effective support to the MDA and the GMD program office for this crucial strategic defense mission," said Tory Bruno, vice president and general manager of strategic and missile defense systems with the Lockheed Space Systems Co. unit. "Lockheed Martin offers comprehensive capabilities to meet these future needs, including providing continuous support to the midcourse missile defense mission for more than 30 years."

As part of the MDA’s acquisition planning process, Lockheed Martin missile defense experts are visiting four GMD sites — Huntsville, Ala., Fort Greely, Alaska, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., and Colorado Springs, Colo. — in March and April. Lockheed will use information gained in these visits to support the MDA’s performance-based logistics acquisition, the company said.