Lockheed Martin suing over lost combat vehicle contract

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 (UPI) -- Lockheed Martin has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense over losing the contract for next-generation combat vehicles to Oshkosh Defense.

The U.S. Army plans to procure 55,000 Joint Light Tactical Vehicles for both the Army and the U.S. Marine Corps through 2040, and is expected to spend approximately $30 billion funding the production by Oshkosh according to Bloomberg.

"After careful consideration of all options, Lockheed Martin decided to file a complaint with the Court of Federal Claims concerning our Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) contract award process," Lockheed Martin wrote in a statement. "We look forward to working with all parties involved on the next steps."

The lawsuit comes after the Government Accountability Office rejected a protest by Lockheed Martin, and could once again force Oshkosh to halt production of the initial order of 17,000 vehicles ordered in August.

"We are hopeful that this latest protest filing will not be permitted to further delay the JLTV program and delivery of these vehicles to provide greater protection for our troops in future missions," an Oshkosh spokeswoman said.

The Wall Street Journal reports the case has been assigned to Judge Charles F. Lettow, who overturned a U.S. Air Force contract award to Exelis Inc. to service an Air Force Base in Greenland.

Lockheed Martin has also filed suit with its partner Boeing over losing the contract for the next-generation Long Range Strike Bomber to Northrop Grumman. That contract has an estimated value of approximately $80 billion.