Lockheed Martin announced today that it has successfully completed on-schedule the critical design review phase of the U.S. Navy's Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) and has made significant progress on the production readiness phase for the next generation narrowband tactical satellite communications system.

More than 250 representatives from the Defense Department, including members of the U.S. Navy, Army, Air Force and Strategic Command, as well the entire contractor team, recently attended a four-day System Critical Design Review (CDR) at Lockheed Martin in Sunnyvale, Calif. The review, which represented the culmination of a 30-month design phase, validated the detailed design of the overall MUOS system to ensure it meets warfighter requirements. The first MUOS satellite is scheduled for on-orbit hand over to the Navy in 2010 along with the entire ground system.

"The MUOS team has worked extremely hard for the past two and a half years to present a complete design that meets all of the operational key performance parameters," said Navy Capt. David Porter, program manager for the Communications Satellite Program Office. "Particularly noteworthy is the fact that the CDR was successfully completed on the schedule laid out 30 months ago and within budget."

MUOS will provide significantly improved and assured communications for U.S. mobile warfighters. The Lockheed Martin design features state-of-the art 3rd Generation (3G) mobile technology that will deliver simultaneous voice, data and video services, as well as the ability to increase capacity and features over the life of the program. Users of the current Ultra High Frequency Follow-On (UFO) system will have improved service and complete interoperability with MUOS to ensure a smooth transition.

"This important milestone demonstrated with high confidence that our innovative MUOS design will meet the warfighter's requirements for real-time, communication on the move and that the team is fully prepared to enter production of this critical program," said Leonard F. Kwiatkowski, vice president and general manager, Lockheed Martin Military Space Programs. "Successful completion of the CDR phase is testimony to our teams' drive to deliver this essential capability on schedule, on budget for our customer."

The successful completion of the CDR phase represents the culmination of the system level CDR, as well as 13 segment and subsystem critical design review events with industry teammates General Dynamics C4 Systems, Scottsdale, Ariz., the MUOS user-entry and ground system provider; and The Boeing Company, which will provide the UFO legacy payload.

Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Sunnyvale, Calif. is under contract to build the first two satellites and associated ground control elements. The Navy's Program Executive Office for Space Systems, Chantilly, Va., and its Communications Satellite Program Office, San Diego, Calif., are responsible for the MUOS program. The contract also provides for options on three additional spacecraft. With all options exercised, the contract for up to five satellites has a total potential value of $3.26 billion.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin employs about 140,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation reported 2006 sales of $39.6 billion.

Media Contact: Steve Tatum, 408-742-7531; e-mail, Stephen.o.tatum@lmco.com

SOURCE: Lockheed Martin