18 Dec 15. Lockheed files injunction to stop work on Oshkosh trucks. Lockheed Martin Corp on Friday filed for a temporary injunction seeking a stop-work order on a $6.75bn contract awarded by the U.S. Army to Oshkosh Corp for 17,000 new armored vehicles to replace the Humvee, which Lockheed is challenging in federal court.
Lockheed on Thursday said it had filed a federal complaint over the handling of the contract by the Army, and court documents posted on Friday showed it had also filed a motion seeking the injunction.
“We look forward to having our Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) complaint heard, and all evidence evaluated, by the Court of Federal Claims,” Lockheed said in a statement.
No comment was immediately available from the Army, which lifted a stop-work order earlier this week after the Government Accountability Office dismissed a protest filed against the contract by Lockheed. (Source: Reuters)
18 Dec 15. Peshmerga Training Effort Moves Into High Gear. Kurdish Peshmerga fighters are rotating through coalition training in northern Iraq at the rate of 800 personnel every 25 days, enabling them to continue their fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant with minimal interruption, the commander of the Kurdistan Training Coordination Center said yesterday. Speaking to reporters traveling with Defense Secretary Ash Carter, German army Col. Bernd Prill described the type of instruction the Peshmerga receive at the training center. Located in northern Iraq, the center is staffed by seven coalition countries — Germany, Italy, Norway, the United Kingdom, Finland, the Netherlands and Hungary — and works with Peshmerga units to improve their capabilities, Prill said. The troops receive basic infantry training, including individual combat skills, squad tactics, and company maneuvers, Prill explained. The training also includes counter-improvised explosive device training, sniper training and combat life-saving medic courses. “We train them on offense and defensive operations … in rural areas and urban areas,” the colonel said. The center also holds special courses for Peshmerga officers, he said, up to the battalion level. Overall, the center has trained some 8,000 Peshmerga fighters, who’ve then returned to the 1,200-kilometer front line to fight ISIL. (Follow Jim Garamone on Twitter: @GaramoneDoDNews)
18 Dec 15. CACI in the lead to buy Lockheed’s IT business – sources. Defense contractor CACI International Inc (CACI.N) has emerged as the top contender for Lockheed Martin Corp’s (LMT.N) government information technology (IT) business, as the interest of rival bidders fades, people familiar with the matter said. Leidos Holdings Inc (LDOS.N) and Engility Holdings Inc (EGL.N), which were also considering offers, feel discouraged by the prospects of the assets for sale following meetings with Lockheed, the people said this week.
Annual revenues for the government IT business are now between $4.5bn and $5bn, instead of the $6bn initially projected, the people said. CACI, however, remains interested in a potential deal, the people added.
To be sure, Lockheed may decide to spin off the government IT business rather than sell it outright, the people said.
The strategic review of the business, which could fetch more than $4bn in a sale, was initially slated to conclude by the end of the year, but is now expected to finish in the first quarter of 2016.
The sources asked not to be identified because the negotiations are confidential. Lockheed, Leidos and Engility declined to comment, while CACI did not respond to a request for comment.
A deal with CACI would create the largest government services contractor in the United States at a time of lower government spending, increased competition and delays in new contracts.
Lockheed, the Pentagon’s largest supplier, is looking to pay down debt following its agreement in July to acquire Sikorsky Aircraft, the helicopter unit of United Technologies Corp (UTX.N),