HUNTSVILLE, Ala., 12/10/2007 -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) Space Systems Company announced today that Robert Bob Drolet, senior director of Huntsville Operations, will be retiring in February 2008, after 15 years of service with the corporation.

Under Drolet's leadership, Lockheed Martin Space Systems' facility in Huntsville has grown from approximately 100 people in just one building, to more than 630 employees and six buildings – the newest of which was just completed.

This growth has reflected Bob's leadership and his passionate commitment to the air and missile defense mission, said Linda J. Reiners, vice president of Missile Defense Systems, Lockheed Martin Space Systems. Bob's leadership has been instrumental in the growth of Lockheed Martin's operations in Huntsville, and he has been an active leader in the Huntsville community.

Before joining Lockheed Martin in 1992, Bob served his nation with distinction during a 29-year career in the U.S. Army, retiring with the rank of Brigadier General. He was the program executive officer for Army Air Defense and held various commands and staff positions, including Pentagon assignments and tours in Germany and Vietnam. He received the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal with Valor, Air Medals and the Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Bronze Star.

Drolet's numerous honors and awards also include: the 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the Northern Alabama Veterans and Fraternal Organizations Coalition; the 2006 Medaris Award, bestowed by the Tennessee Valley Chapter of the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) for his significant contributions to the technical progress of the defense industrial base in support of the defense preparedness of the United States; the Huntsville-Madison County Leadership Program's 2001 Distinguished Leadership Award for his contributions to community organizations; and induction into the Madison County Military Heritage Commission Hall of Heroes in 1997, in recognition of his distinguished military career.

Drolet is actively involved in: veterans' organizations, including the Madison County Veteran's Memorial Foundation; business organizations, including the Huntsville-Madison County Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club of Huntsville; community organizations, including the Boy Scouts of America, and charitable organizations, including the Heart Association and United Cerebral Palsy. Drolet is the Alabama state president of the Association of the U.S. Army and a member of the board of governors for the Heritage Club, and was a commissioner for the Alabama State Commission on Manufacturing from 2003 to 2005.

Drolet holds an M.S. degree from Shippensburg University in Shippensburg, Pa., and a B.A. degree from Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

On behalf of all of his friends and colleagues at Lockheed Martin, I offer Bob and his wife Ann our sincere thanks for their years of service to Lockheed Martin and our nation, and bestwishesfor a happy and healthy retirement, Reiners said.

As Drolet retires, Lockheed Martin Space Systems is creating a new position, vice president of Northern Alabama Operations, to support the company's growing business activities in the region. This position will be filled by James Jim A. Tevepaugh, who has served as vice president of Target and Countermeasure Programs. Tevepaugh has 30-years of experience in the aerospace industry and is well known within the Northern Alabama community.

Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, a major operating unit of Lockheed Martin Corporation, designs, develops, tests, manufactures and operates a full spectrum of advanced-technology systems for national security, civil and commercial customers. Chief products include human space flight systems; a full range of remote sensing, navigation, meteorological and communications satellites and instruments; space observatories and interplanetary spacecraft; laser radar; fleet ballistic missiles; and missile defense systems.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin employs about 140,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and containment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation reported 2006 sales of $39.6 billion.