Lockheed Martin has won a contract for supporting the production of Trident II (D5) missiles.
Valued at $494.9 million, the contract will entail provision of deployed systems support for these missiles.
According to the contract notice published here:
“Lockheed Martin Space, Titusville, Florida, was awarded a $494,875,260 fixed-price-incentive, cost-plus-incentive-fee and cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (PZ0001) to a previously awarded and announced un-priced letter contract (N0003019C0100) for TRIDENT II (D5) missile production and deployed systems support. Work will be performed in Cape Canaveral, Florida (23%); Kings Bay, Georgia (19.5%); Bangor, Washington (19.4%); Sunnyvale, California (16.7%); Denver, Colorado (8%); Titusville, Florida (4.8%); Magna, Utah (2.7%); Orlando, Florida (1.3%); and other various locations (less than 1% each, 4.6% total). Work is expected to be completed Sept. 30, 2024.
The maximum dollar value of the modification, including the base and all option items, if exercised, is $1,226,750,858. Fiscal 2019 weapons procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $38,341,216; and United Kingdom funds in the amount of $4,165,366 are being obligated on this award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.
This contract is being awarded to the contractor on a sole source basis under 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1) and was previously synopsized on the Federal Business Opportunities website. Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. “
Trident II D5 missiles are deployed aboard Ohio class and Vanguard class submarines. The three-stage weapon is designed to reach a distance of up to 4K nautical miles and carry multiple reentry bodies.
Deadnought is a waste of money! Re-inventing the wheel!
Why not build enlarged hulled Astutes, with VLS missile compartment, instead?
Its not as simple as just adding in a missile section in the middle, there are a fair few other compartments too with gear and people, and seeing as how a fair whack of the money has already been spent on design etc then there’s probably not a lot to be saved financially. Submarines are expensive to build and any changes to a ‘stretched’ Astute would still cost and they’d still need to be tweaked for the ballast etc, its not as simple as a stretched skimmer.
I am also proposing the hull of the Astute will be 25% bigger in diameter, and also longer, an up-scaled Astute.
Basically, a bigger tin can then. That’s the (relatively) cheap part, its the gubbins in it that cost.