Lockheed wins $1.5 bln GPS satellite deal

By Jim Wolf

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said on Thursday it had won a U.S. Air Force contract to start building a new generation of global positioning satellites, a deal valued by one source at up to $1.5 billion.

Lockheed, the Pentagon's No. 1 supplier by sales, beat Boeing Co (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), the No. 2 supplier, for the first batch of satellites in the new Global Positioning System known as GPS III.

The Air Force has previously said it plans to buy up to eight satellites in the initial batch. But a person involved with the program said the initial contract was for two satellites with options for 10 more.

Air Force representatives did not immediately return calls seeking comment. The Air Force has scheduled a teleconference for 6:30 p.m. (2230 GMT) to discuss the contract award.

Lockheed, in a statement, said the contract win was an important achievement for it and industry partners including ITT (ITT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and General Dynamics Corp (GD.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

The new constellation of satellites is to provide increased accuracy to users worldwide. The first of the new satellites is to be launched in 2013 or 2014.

GPS satellites, in one of six Earth orbits, circle the globe every 12 hours beaming precision navigation and timing signals used for everything from mapping, to business transaction authentication, to modern warfare.

GPS III satellites will feature greater signal power than previous configurations, boosting resistance to jamming, perceived as a growing threat.

(Reporting by Jim Wolf; Editing by Tim Dobbyn)