Lockheed Isn't Waiting For Pentagon Orders Anymore

Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. For decades, the U.S. defense industry has followed a familiar playbook: the Pentagon identifies a need, issues a request for proposals, and contractors compete to build the winning system. Rather than waiting for formal Pentagon requests, Lockheed is increasingly developing weapons and expanding manufacturing capacity before contracts are awarded, betting it can anticipate the military's future needs. Not Waiting for Orders AnymoreDiscussing internally funded drone defense programs, Taiclet recalled telling engineers, "Build 1,000 of these," even before customer orders materialized. The goal, he said, is to demonstrate operational capability first and secure contracts afterward, rather than waiting for government procurement cycles to begin.