Lockheed Martin Corp. retained its position as the U.S.'s top defense contractor in 1997, indicate statistics recently released by Dept. of Defense. The Bethesda, Md.-based firm won $11.6 billion in prime military contract awards during the year, slightly under its $12 billion total in 1996 but still ahead of the No. 2 contractor, Boeing Co. With $9.6 billion in awards, Boeing vaulted into second place on the list from its No. 8 position in 1996 as a result of its merger with McDonnell Douglas Corp.
Completing the top ten list in 1997 behind Lockheed and Boeing were: Northrop Grumman Corp., $3.5 billion; General Dynamics Corp., $3 billion; Raytheon Co, $2.9 billion; General Motors Corp., $2.8 billion; United Technologies Corp., $1.8 billion; General Electric Co., $1.7 billion; Litton Industries Inc., $1.6 billion; and Textron Inc., $1.4 billion.
