Proactive Investors - BAE Systems (LON:BAES) today won a US $200mln (£161mln) air fleet support contract for F-35 fighters from the Ministry of Defence, making almost US$700mln of work for the US-made fighter in the past 24 hours.
Farnborough-based BAE announced yesterday Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT), the F-35's maker, had awarded it a US$491mln contract to upgrade electronic warfare systems;
“The Block 4 EW system will offer greater situational awareness, enhanced survivability and increased capabilities to counter modern threats and is upgradeable to address evolving threats,” said Lisa Aucoin, vice president of F-35 Solutions at BAE.
The upgrade includes a new integrated core processor with greater computing power, a panoramic cockpit display and an enhanced memory unit, BAE added in its statement.
To date, BAE said it has already supplied Lockheed with 1,200 F-35 EW systems.
No details were released on how many of the new systems are involved in this contract, though BAE did say it starts next year and will run into 2025.
Systems will be shipped to Lockheed’s Fort Worth plant in Texas.
For the Ministry of Defence, BAE won the work in its role as a sub-contractor to Lockheed Martin, with the award expected to create 140 jobs in the UK.
Of these, 130 jobs will be based at the Norfolk base and around ten jobs through the supply chain, the statement added.
Shares in BAE today were unchanged at 990.4p, a five-year high.