Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) and Boeing (NYSE: BA) got booted out of India's fighter jet competition, missing out on a potential $10 billion payday. But while Boeing may be out of luck, Bloomberg reports that Lockheed just floated a plan that could get it back in the running in India.
While the firm's F-16 fighter jet failed to beat rival offerings from Dassault and EADS last month, a movement's afoot in the U.S. Senate to save the deal for Lockheed by authorizing an F-35 stealth fighter sale instead. Lockheed believes that this honest-to-goodness fifth-generation fighter jet could trump anything Dassault and EADS have to offer.
Will the Indians agree to reopen the competition, in exchange for a chance to own the world's preeminent fighter jet before their archrival Pakistan gets it? And if they do so, will they pay for the privilege? Experts estimate that the F-35 costs substantially more than the F-16 Lockheed originally offered. That's a pretty steep premium, but if all works out, Lockheed could still come out of this ahead. Heck, it might end up even better off.
Lockheed's showed its hole card, but can Boeing find a way to get back into India? Add either stock ( or both! ) to your watchlist today, and find out.
