Lockheed’s Jim Taiclet on Weapons System Demand, Digital Tech for National Defense

Jim Taiclet, chairman, president and CEO of Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), said High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems or HIMARS and Javelin missiles are a big part of the arms package the U.S. government is providing for Ukraine to help the country defend itself against Russian invasion and that he expects to see robust orders for such types of systems in 2023.

“I do think there’s going to be some robust ordering for these kinds of systems because the world is recognizing that being able to defend yourself is a higher priority based on the necessity of the day,” Taiclet, a two-time Wash100 awardee, told Bloomberg in a video interview posted Thursday.

When asked about the dwindling stockpiles of weapons systems, he said it is a valid concern but is being addressed.

“So what we’ve advocated with in partnership with our government and Congress is to create new purchasing authorities so that we can have multiyear purchases of these important and critical munitions, for example, to have faster development cycles for contracting,” Taiclet said.

He noted that the company is working with the telecommunications and technology industries to advance the implementation of digital technologies into national defense.

“We’re driving a concept that I’m trying to introduce into the whole defense enterprise … to create a 21st century security capability by driving digital technologies into national defense, into space exploration and into climate protection, for example,” Taiclet explained.

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