UPDATE 1-US Justice joining lawsuit against SAIC, others

(Adds details)

WASHINGTON, July 2 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department said on Thursday it joined a false claims lawsuit against Science Applications International Corp (SAI.N) and others over a $3.2 billion contract to provide support services at a Mississippi space center.

The suit is also against SAIC partner Applied Enterprise Solutions and its Chief Executive Officer Dale Galloway; Stephen Adamec, former director of the Naval Oceanographic Major Shared Resource Center at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi; and Robert Knesel, deputy director of the Mississippi facility.

The Justice Department said the lawsuit, filed in federal court in Mississippi, claimed that Adamec and Knesel, then government employees, conspired to ensure that SAIC and its partners won the contract.

In April 2004, the government's General Services Administration awarded the contract to SAIC, which teamed with AES and Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) Space Operations to perform the services.

The lawsuit was filed by David Magee, a former employee at the space center under the so-called whistle-blower provisions of the False Claims Act. (Reporting by Diane Bartz and James Vicini, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)