Syracuse:
The U.S. Navy has selected Lockheed Martin and its plant in suburban Syracuse for a contract worth up to $59 million to improve the electronic warfare defenses of its ships.
The new contract, valued at nearly $8 million, is for Block 1B3 systems for the Navy’s Surface Electronic Warfare Improvement Program, or SEWIP.
Lockheed will update existing electronic warfare defenses on U.S. aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers and other warships to improve anti-ship missile defense, counter targeting and counter-surveillance capabilities, the company said.
With options for additional orders, the cumulative value of the contract would be $58.9 million, the Navy said. Lockheed previously received contracts worth up to $147 million for Block 2 of the SEWIP program.
About 82 percent of the work will be performed at Lockheed’s plant at Electronics Park in Salina, with the remaining work completed in Lansdale, Pa., according to the Navy. Work is due to be complete by January 2017.
Lockheed, one of the largest private employers in Central New York, has about 1,600 workers at its Electronics Park campus.
