UK Defence Ministry Backs Lockheed Martin Over Airbus for £2.4B Skynet Program

The UK Ministry of Defence has recommended Lockheed Martin over incumbent contractor Airbus Defence and Space for the £2.4 billion ($3.2 billion) next-generation Skynet military communications satellite program. Prime Minister Andy Burnham is scheduled to review the recommendation and make a final determination within two weeks, a decision that will set the primary industrial partner for the UK's military space communications for the decade ahead.

Reports of the recommendation emerged on November 5. The award covers the Skynet Wideband Satellite System, designed to provide sovereign, high-capacity military satellite communications for British armed forces and international allies. The recommendation has prompted significant domestic debate over manufacturing footprints and aerospace employment.

Airbus has served as prime contractor across multiple generations of the Skynet architecture, which forms the operational core of the UK's military space communications capability. The company secured the Skynet 6A satellite contract in 2020 and constructed the currently operational Skynet 5 constellation. Airbus manufactures spacecraft at sites in Stevenage and Portsmouth.

Airbus warned that losing the contract could lead to the elimination of up to 3,000 UK jobs. Lockheed Martin has countered by pledging to establish an entirely new UK-based manufacturing facility to build the next-generation satellites domestically.

Burnham's upcoming evaluation will weigh the MoD's procurement assessment against long-term sovereign industrial capacity and defense employment. The conclusion of the two-week review will determine the primary industrial partner for the UK's military communications space infrastructure for the decade ahead.

The final ruling is expected within two weeks of the review's start, following Burnham's assessment of the Ministry's recommendation.