By Franz-Stefan Gady
Northrup Grumman emerges as winner, beating out Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
Yesterday, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) announced Northrup Grumman as the winner of a competition to develop its new top-secret Long-Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B), according to the USAF website.
“The LRS-B is critical to national defense and is a top priority for the Air Force,” said Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James. “We face a complex security environment. It’s imperative our Air Force invests in the right people, technology, capability and training to defend the nation and its interests – at an affordable cost.”
The LRS-B will “allow the Air Force to operate in tomorrow’s high-end threat environment,” she added. Elaborating on the selection process, James emphasized that it was conducted “with a high level of transparency with our industrial partners… we believe our decision represents the best value for our nation.”
Northrup Grumman beat out a Boeing-Lockheed Martin partnership to be the primary contractor for the aircraft. However, Boeing and Lockheed Martin are likely to protest the contract award and will wage a lobbying campaign in U.S. Congress to challenge the Pentagon’s decision.
Read the full story at The Diplomat