Lockheed Files Protest Over JLTV Award, Says It Had Concerns Over Bid Evaluation

Nearly two weeks after the Pentagon announced Oshkosh Defense as the winner of the first phase of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle contract, Lockheed Martin filed a protest Tuesday challenging the $6.7 billion award to manufacture 17,000 of the armored, next-generation Humvee successors.

“After evaluating the data provided at our debrief, Lockheed Martin has filed a protest of the award decision on the JLTV program,” the Bethesda, Maryland-based defense contractor said in a statement to Talk Business & Politics. “We firmly believe we offered the most capable and affordable solution for the program. Lockheed Martin does not take protests lightly, but we are protesting to address our concerns regarding the evaluation of Lockheed Martin’s offer.”

Oshkosh beat out Lockheed and Humvee maker AM General for the highly sought after JLTV program award, which was first initiated nearly a decade ago by the U.S. Army and Marine Corps.

Although the Pentagon’s contract to produce nearly 55,000 JLTVs for Army and Marine combat soldiers is estimated to be worth more than $30 billion over the 25-year life of the program, Oshkosh’s initial fixed-firm price contract will pay out only $6.7 billion during the so-called, three year low-rate production phase to manufacture 17,000 JLTVs.

Following the award on Aug. 25, Lockheed Martin officials said they were disappointed to learn that the U.S. Army and Marine Corps did not select the defense giant’s version of JLTV, which was expected to be built at the company’s industrial site in East Camden.

“We believe we presented a very strong solution and await the customers’ debrief to hear more detail regarding the reasons behind this selection before making a decision about a potential protest,” a Lockheed Martin spokesperson said at the time.

Humvee maker AM General said it has decided not to file a protest. The South Bend, Indiana defense contractor said it intends to aggressively develop and execute, in partnership with the Army and Marine Corps, a comprehensive Humvee modernization and maintenance program to service current and future light tactical vehicle fleets in the U.S. and across the globe.

“The need for this program is recognized and supported by a strong, bipartisan coalition in Congress who stand ready to work with the Army and Marine Corps to accelerate this critical modernization program in order to meet the operational needs of our military – and customers around the world – right now and for decades to come,” AM General said in a statement.

Also, the Indiana defense contractor was awarded a $429 million contract by the Department of Defense on Sept. 4 to build a high mobility, multi-wheeled ambulance for domestic disaster relief efforts by the Army, Army Reserve and National Guard.