Lockheed Martin Awarded $20.7 Million Navy Deal for Missile Launch Systems
Naval Sea Systems Command awarded the defense contractor a $20.7 million contract modification for engineering and depot support of the MK 41 Vertical Launching System, with work due by December 2026.
MOORESTOWN, NEW JERSEY — Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems received a $20.7 million Navy contract modification to sustain the missile-launch backbone of the U.S. surface fleet.
The cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost-only modification funds engineering integration, technical support, material, travel and depot operations for the MK 41 Vertical Launching System, its electronic systems and its computer programs. The Defense Department disclosed the award in a contract announcement dated August 5, 2026 at 5:00 PM ET, as announced on war.gov.
Naval Sea Systems Command, the Washington-based organization that buys and maintains the Navy’s ships and combat systems, is the contracting activity. The MK 41 Vertical Launching System is a shipboard missile-storage and firing system that lets warships launch a mix of weapons from a common set of below-deck cells.Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, a business segment of the aerospace and defense company headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, lists the MK 41 among its core products according to lockheedmartin.com.
“Rotary and Mission Systems delivers mission first innovation across its portfolio of rotorcraft technology, sensors, radar systems, command and control, combat simulation and training, advanced cybersecurity and undersea systems,” the company said on its website, describing a portfolio spanning nearly 900 programs in more than 100 nations according to lockheedmartin.com.
The award modifies a previously issued contract, N00024-20-C-5392, first signed in 2020. Fiscal 2025 defense-wide funds of $8,524,748, or 78%, and fiscal 2026 defense-wide research, development, test and evaluation funds of $2,447,083, or 22%, will be obligated at the time of award. Neither tranche expires at the end of the current fiscal year. Work runs across seven states led by Moorestown, New Jersey, at 60%, followed by Ventura, California, at 16% and San Diego at 10%.
The modification keeps a mature weapons system running rather than launching a new program, which limits the pool of winners to the original manufacturer. Lockheed Martin gains sustained revenue and continued work for its engineers in Moorestown, a Philadelphia suburb that remains one of the unit’s largest sites according to executivebiz.com. The Navy locks in ongoing support for launchers already installed across cruisers and destroyers, while competitors have little room to bid on maintenance tied to proprietary systems.
The deal is modest against the contractor’s recent haul. It marks the 24th contract awarded to Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems in 2026, lifting the company’s total contract value for the year to $3.39 billion. The award falls well below the unit’s record contract of nearly $3 billion. It also ranked among 10 Defense Department contracts issued nationwide that day.
Routine sustainment awards for the MK 41 rarely reach the average reader directly. The system arms the Aegis-equipped ships that carry out missile defense and strike missions, so the funding supports fleet readiness rather than any consumer product or local service.
This has happened before. The MK 41 has drawn repeated support and production contracts to Lockheed Martin over decades, reflecting its role as a standard launcher across allied navies. Recurring modifications to long-running Navy contracts are common as the service extends support windows and adds funding year by year.
Naval Sea Systems Command will decide on any further funding or follow-on work for the launcher program. A date for the next decision has not been announced, though the current work is expected to be completed by December 2026.
The MK 41 traces a lineage of naval firepower that reshaped surface warfare, as happened before with earlier launch systems. The company that became Lockheed Martin renamed the unit to Rotary and Mission Systems on September 5, 2016, after absorbing 18,000 employees from the November 2015 acquisition of Sikorsky Aircraft according to militaryembedded.com. That reorganization folded shipboard combat systems, sensors and undersea programs into a single business line. The consolidation positioned the unit to keep the Navy’s launchers and radars under one roof, a footprint that continues to anchor thousands of jobs in Moorestown decades after the vertical launcher first went to sea.
This contract represents the 24th contract awarded to Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, in 2026, bringing the company’s total contract value for the year to $3,389,546,208. It is also the 25th Department of Defense contract awarded in New Jersey during 2026. While this is not the largest contract ever awarded to Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, whose record stands at $2,968,000,000, it is notable within the Navy portfolio. Specifically, it falls between the 2026 Navy portfolio’s year-to-date minimum of $9,046,496 and maximum of $8,000,000,000. Overall, this award was announced among 10 Department of Defense contracts issued nationwide on August 5, 2026.
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