Ahead of Sequester, Lockheed Locks Down $334 Million F-35 Contract

Funds will pay for parts necessary to build 35 fighter jets for U.S., U.K., and Norwegian militaries.

By Rich Smith – Mar 1, 2013 at 9:45AM EST

Just hours before the government's "sequester" plan went into effect, the Department of Defense announced Thursday that it has awarded Lockheed Martin (LMT 1.05%) a $333.8 million contract related to the F-35 Lightning II fighter jet.

The contract will fund purchase of long lead-time parts, materials, and components required to manufacture 35 "Low-Rate Initial Production Lot VIII" F-35s scheduled to be produced for multiple purchasers:

19 conventional takeoff and landing F-35As for the U.S. Air Force.
6 short takeoff / vertical landing F-35Bs for the U.S. Marine Corps.
4 Carrier Variant F-35Cs for the U.S. Navy.
4 F-35Bs for the British armed forces.
2 F-35As for the Norwegian armed forces.

This contract is set to be completed by February 2014.

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Rich Smith is a contributing Motley Fool defense and stock market analyst covering publicly traded and emerging companies in defense, space, aerospace, and other sectors. Prior to The Motley Fool, Rich practiced international corporate law for Clifford Chance in Russia, and for the Russian-Ukrainian Legal Group in Moscow, Kyiv, and Washington, D.C. He holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations from the College of William & Mary, a law degree from the University of Baltimore, and a language certification from the International Institute of Russian Language & Culture in Tver, Russian Federation. The Globe and Mail once featured him as “one of the best stock pickers since 2009.”

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Ahead of Sequester, Lockheed Locks Down $334 Million F-35 Contract

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