Lockheed Martin to provide Japanese warship with ballistic missile defense capability

WASHINGTON, 18 July 2005. Engineers from the Lockheed Martin Sensors and Systems division in Moorestown, N.J., are upgrading a Japanese destroyer warship to enable the vessel to defend against ballistic missile attacks.

Lockheed Martin are developing and installing equipment and computer programs to convert a Japanese Kongo-class Aegis destroyer to an Aegis ballistic missile defense block 2004 capability.

The company is doing the work under terms of a $124 million contract modification awarded July 15 from U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington. The contract number is N00024-03-C-6110.

Work will be in Moorestown, N.J.; Baltimore, Md.; Eagan, Minn.; and Aberdeen, S.D. The job is to be finished by November 2007.