Lockheed Martin Wins $209M Navy SEWIP Contract
The U.S. Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin a $208.96 million contract modification for additional production of AN/SLQ-32(V)6 Surface Electronic Warfare Improvement Program systems, extending production work under a contract that has supported the Navy’s shipboard electronic warfare modernization since 2020.
The firm-fixed-price modification was awarded Sept. 30, 2026, by Naval Sea Systems Command under contract N00024-20-C-5503. If the associated options are exercised, the cumulative value of the contract will reach $1.708 billion.
Work is scheduled to continue through September 2029. Lockheed Martin will perform 78 percent of the work in Liverpool, New York, and 22 percent in Lansdale, Pennsylvania.
A production contract with a longer history
The latest award is a modification rather than a new standalone procurement. The underlying N00024-20-C-5503 contract was originally awarded in January 2020 for follow-on full-rate production of the AN/SLQ-32(V)6, along with AN/SLQ-32A(V)6 and AN/SLQ-32C(V)6 variants. That original award was valued at $185.025 million, with options that could have raised its cumulative value to $812.06 million.
The contract history illustrates the Navy’s continuing reliance on the SEWIP production line rather than treating shipboard electronic warfare as a one-time modernization effort.
A 2024 modification to the same contract provided $15.2 million for provisioned item spares supporting production of AN/SLQ-32(V)6 and AN/SLQ-32C(V)6 systems.
The latest modification therefore adds another substantial production commitment to an established program.
What the Navy is buying
The AN/SLQ-32(V)6 is part of the Navy’s Surface Electronic Warfare Improvement Program, which progressively upgrades the service’s long-running AN/SLQ-32 electronic warfare architecture.
The Navy describes SEWIP Block 2 as an enhanced electronic support capability built around an upgraded electronic support antenna and receiver, together with an open combat-system interface. The objective is to improve detection and accuracy against evolving threats while supporting shipboard electronic warfare operations. Block 2 entered full-rate production in September 2016.
The AN/SLQ-32(V)6 combines capabilities from different SEWIP increments. Navy documentation identifies its configuration as incorporating Block 1B2 Specific Emitter Identification, Block 1B3 High Gain High Sensitivity capability and Block 2 electronic support improvements.
Lockheed Martin describes the system as providing passive electronic support for early detection, classification and threat warning, particularly against anti-ship missile threats. The company also identifies the AN/SLQ-32(V)6 as the Navy’s program-of-record electronic support system within SEWIP.
That distinction matters. The system is primarily concerned with sensing and characterizing threats rather than being a missile interceptor itself.
The electronic warfare role at sea
Modern surface combatants operate in an electromagnetic environment where radars, communications systems, navigation equipment and weapons seekers can all contribute to a ship’s signature.
Electronic support systems help a warship identify and understand those emissions. That information can contribute to a broader defensive response, including electronic attack, decoys and other countermeasures.
Lockheed Martin says the AN/SLQ-32(V)6 can integrate with ship combat systems such as Aegis and provide data that can help cue electronic attack and other electronic warfare countermeasures.
This makes the system one component of a layered defensive architecture. Its value cannot be assessed independently from the ship’s radar, combat-management system, weapons, decoys and other electronic warfare equipment.
The Navy’s own description of SEWIP similarly emphasizes detection, analysis, threat warning and improved situational awareness rather than treating the system as a standalone defensive weapon.
Why continued production matters
The most important feature of the September award is its continuity.
Anti-ship weapons and their seekers continue to evolve, increasing the importance of electronic support systems that can identify and characterize threats before an engagement reaches the terminal phase. SEWIP is designed as an evolutionary program, allowing the Navy to upgrade the existing AN/SLQ-32 architecture through successive blocks rather than replacing the entire system each time a new threat emerges.
The Navy established SEWIP to modernize the AN/SLQ-32 family, with Block 2 focused on electronic support improvements and later development moving toward greater electronic attack capability.
The production decision also has an industrial dimension. The latest modification directs most of the work to Lockheed Martin’s Liverpool operation, while Lansdale accounts for the remaining share. Maintaining production through 2029 provides continuity for the industrial and engineering base supporting the system.
At the same time, the contract should not be interpreted as evidence that the AN/SLQ-32(V)6 is the Navy’s complete electronic warfare solution. The SEWIP family includes additional blocks and related systems, and the Navy continues to develop capabilities beyond the Block 2 electronic support function.
Funding points to a production-focused effort
The $208.96 million modification is being financed primarily with procurement and shipbuilding accounts.
The award includes $129.49 million in fiscal 2026 shipbuilding and conversion funding, representing 62 percent of the obligation. Another $58.15 million, or 28 percent, comes from fiscal 2026 other procurement funds.
Fiscal 2025 other procurement funds account for $20.31 million, or 10 percent, while fiscal 2026 research, development, test and evaluation funding contributes approximately $1.01 million.
The distribution indicates that the award is predominantly supporting procurement and production rather than being principally a research effort.
A capability that sits inside a larger defense system
The AN/SLQ-32(V)6’s significance is best understood as part of the Navy’s broader effort to improve the survivability of surface combatants in contested electromagnetic environments.
The system has already moved beyond development into established production. The Navy’s acquisition documentation identifies SEWIP Block 2 as a full-rate production program, while Lockheed Martin has continued to provide production and engineering support for the capability.
There is also evidence of wider adoption. In 2024, Lockheed Martin announced a $113 million Navy contract combining U.S. and Japanese purchases of AN/SLQ-32(V)6 and AN/SLQ-32C(V)6 systems. The company described the Japanese purchase as the first international SEWIP sale.
For the U.S. Navy, however, the central issue remains fleet integration. Electronic warfare effectiveness depends not only on the sensor itself but also on how quickly information can move into the ship’s combat system and how effectively commanders can combine electronic support with kinetic and non-kinetic defenses.
The latest $208.96 million award does not announce a new SEWIP capability or a new electronic warfare block. Instead, it reinforces production of an established Navy system and extends the manufacturing effort into 2029.
That makes the contract less about a sudden technological shift and more about sustaining a core layer of shipboard electronic warfare as the Navy continues modernizing its surface fleet.
