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Sensitive F-35 fighter jet components, reportedly including a canopy containing stealth technology, ended up in Hong Kong during transit from Australia to the United States. The incident has triggered a congressional inquiry over potential exposure of sensitive technology. The Pentagon and Lockheed Martin are working to recover the parts and determine how they were diverted.

June 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. Army awarded Lockheed Martin a multi-year contract worth $4.5 billion for its air defense Patriot Missiles system, the Pentagon said on Friday.

The contract covers 870 PAC-3 MSE missiles and associated hardware.

Lockheed is manufacturing the newest version of the interceptors that arm the Patriot, known as PAC-3 MSE, which cost about $4 million each, according to Army budget documents.

The company will provide JDAM tail kits and other supplies under the sole-source fixed-price, indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract, the Pentagon said Friday. The company will work on the kits, as well as spares, repairs, technical assistance and laser JDAM sensor kits, at its St Louis, Missouri, facility through the end of February 2030.

The contract’s period of performance is set to run through 2029, according to the Pentagon notice. The Air Force is notionally planning to retire the dual-capable B-2 in the early 2030s — replacing it with the B-21 Raider, also a Northrop Grumman product — meaning this award could be one of the last for the iconic stealth bomber.