Lockheed Martin expects hike in demand for PATRIOT, THAAD: CFO

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The largest defense contractor in the United States, Lockheed Martin, expects to see an increase in demand for its anti-missile systems, including PATRIOT and Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) systems, Chief Financial Officer Jay Malave said Thursday.

Responding to a question about systems the firm is likely to export more of in the near future, Malave said, "PAC-3 (the PATRIOT Advanced Capability-3), THAAD, we would expect there to be some interest, but again, it's just really early stages there."

"You know, PAC-3 already has penetration in Europe. It is 14 countries that we export PAC-3 to. Five of those are in Europe today," he added during the 38th Annual Strategic Decisions Conference. 

Lockheed Martin is a firm notorious for its lobbying of the US government on various issues related to conflicts and wars abroad and profiting off bloodshed. The corporation benefits from any war the United States or its allies wage, as it is Washington's go-to for defense systems, fighter jets, and various military equipment.

With the war business simmering down during the latest period following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, Lockheed Martin sees Ukraine as fertile land for its interests and for it to inflate its earnings with Yemen being one of the last few strongholds the company is spending equipment on. And as fears grow regarding an all-out World War, the firm perceives Europe as a whole as an opportunity for expanding its business. 

The systems referenced by Malave are likely to be bought by the United States government and handed over to Ukraine as the US battles heavy inflation that has been taking a huge toll on normal citizens and sparking outrage from the American people.

PATRIOT is a long-range defense system intended for countering ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as advanced aircraft. The systems have been deployed in Germany, Greece, "Israel", Japan, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Poland, Sweden, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Romania, Spain, and Taiwan. 

South Korea approved a few days ago a $605 million project to procure an unspecified number of US-made PAC-3 missile interceptors to upgrade its PAC-2 launchers to the PAC-3 modification by 2027 as Seoul grows warier of Pyongyang in light of the North's latest round of missile tests. 

THAAD, on the other hand, is capable of shooting down short, medium, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles. So far, it has only been deployed in Romania, "Israel", the United Arab Emirates, and South Korea.

Lockheed Martin won in April a $1.4 billion modification contract extension to produce more THAAD interceptors for the United States and Saudi Arabia.