Lockheed Martin awarded MK 41 VLS contract

Lockheed Martin will provide an engineering design service for the MK 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS) under a contract issued by the US Navy, announced on 3 June. The $10 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract combines purchases for the US Navy and eight allied navies under the US Foreign Military Sales programme.

The contract covers missile integration, software development, integration of VLS into new ships, technical refresh, systems engineering and life cycle support for MK 41 VLS; including for the US Navy's Ticonderoga-class cruisers and Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers.

The MK 41 VLS is designed to contribute toward fleet protection from naval warfare threats. It is capable of launching anti-air, anti-submarine, surface-to-surface and strike missiles, and can receive orders from multiple weapon control systems to handle a wide range of warfighting missions.

Joe North, vice president of Littoral Ship Systems, Lockheed Martin's Mission System and Training, said: ‘This award continues our legacy of reliability and performance on the VLS programme. We remain proud to work with the navy to make the MK 41 VLS the world's premier below-deck, multi-mission launching system and take the responsibility the navy has entrusted to us very seriously.’

This contract includes options, which if exercised would bring the total contract value to $182 million.