Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC) and the Boeing (NYSE: BA) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) team are bidding on a potential $55 billion U.S. Air Force contract to build next-generation long-range strike bomber aircraft, The Motley Fool reported Sunday.Katie Spence writes that these companies are the main contenders to build 80 to 100 LRS-B aircraft at $550 million procurement cost per unit, as the Air Force seeks to replace its aging current fleet.
The new aircraft is expected to have broadband stealth capability against low-frequency radars, nuclear weaponry and both manned and unmanned applications.
Spence reports that Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James noted the LRS-B project as a “top modernization priority.”
The overall contract could be worth at least $80 billion, including research and development work, and is scheduled to be awarded in 2015, the report said.
Boeing, which is the prime contractor in its bid with Lockheed,  built the B-52 bomber, while Northrop built the B-2.
