Lockheed Martin LM2100 satellite under construction.

Lockheed Martin LM2100 satellite under construction

Lockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security and advanced technologies company with worldwide interests. In March 1995 the company was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta and is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, (Washington DC area), USA. Lockheed Martin employs 126,000 people worldwide.

Lockheed Martin is one of the largest companies in the aerospace, defense, security, and technologies industry. The biggest portion of Lockheed Martin’s revenues comes from military sales. The company is the largest of US federal government contractors and receives nearly 10% of the funds paid out by the Pentagon.

The company received the Collier Trophy six times, including in 2001 for being part of developing the X-35/F-35B LiftFan Propulsion System and most recently in 2006 for leading the team that developed the F-22 Raptor fighter jet. Lockheed Martin is currently developing the F-35 Lightning II and leads the international supply chain, leads the team for the development and implementation of technology solutions for the new USAF Space Fence (AFSSS replacement), and is the primary contractor for the development of the Orion Spacecraft command module. The company also invests in healthcare systems, renewable energy systems and intelligent energy distribution and compact nuclear fusion.

The Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company is one of the five major business divisions of Lockheed Martin. The Company is headquartered in Denver, Colorado with additional sites in Sunnyvale and Santa Cruz in California and Huntsville in Alabama and elsewhere in the US and the UK. The division currently employs about 16,000 people, and its most notable products are commercial and military satellites, space probes, missile defense systems, NASA’s Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, and the Space Shuttle External Tank.

Lockheed Martin major competitors are Boeing, Space Systems/Loral, Thales Alenia Space, Airbus Defense & Space and JSC Information Satellite Systems.