Boeing, Lockheed to partner on next-generation bomber

Boeing Co. and Lockheed Martin are teaming up in a bid to build the Air Force’s next-generation bomber.

In a joint news conference this morning, executives from the two defense giants said combining their companies’ respective expertise could give a top-of-the-line, technologically advanced bomber to begin replacing the aging B-52.

“Both companies are bringing the best of what they have available,” said Darryl Davis, president of Boeing’s Advanced Systems division. “We have formed a very strong relationship here and are working very well together.”

The Air Force has said it wants a new mid-range, subsonic, manned bomber, in flight by 2018. Most bombers in the Air Force fleet were designed in the 1970s or earlier. It plans to start funding development on the project in 2010, and production would likely begin in 2015 or 2016.

Northrop Grumman has said it plans to pursue the contract as well. A spokesman for that company had no immediate comment Friday morning.

Work will take place at both Boeing and Lockheed facilities across the country, though Boeing’s efforts will be headquartered in St. Louis. A Boeing spokesman said if the team wins the contract, at least some manufacturing would take place here, too.

The two companies frequently compete on large defense contracts but are sharing work on the Lockheed Martin-led F-22 stealth fighter. They’ve been working together on plans for the bomber since Lockheed approached Boeing about a partnership a couple of years ago, said Frank Cappuccio, Lockheed’s executive vice president for Advanced Development Programs and Strategic Planning.