CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, Fla., 03/15/2008 --

  A U.S. Air Force modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M)  satellite, built by Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), was successfully launched  today from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station aboard a United Launch Alliance  (ULA) Delta II launch vehicle.        The satellite, designated GPS IIR-19M, is the sixth in a line of eight  GPS IIR satellites that Lockheed Martin Navigation Systems, Valley Forge,  Pa. has modernized for its customer, the Global Positioning Systems Wing,  Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif.        Today's mission represented the third successful launch of a GPS IIR-M  satellite in under five months and is one of the final three Block IIR-M  satellites planned for launch in 2008 to sustain and improve the GPS  constellation.        Each IIR-M satellite includes a modernized antenna panel that provides  increased signal power to receivers on the ground, two new military signals  for improved accuracy, enhanced encryption and anti-jamming capabilities  for the military, and a second civil signal that will provide users with an  open access signal on a different frequency.        All of us at Lockheed Martin are proud of our long-standing  partnership with the Air Force and the Block IIR-M's impressive record of  performance, said Don DeGryse, Lockheed Martin's vice president of  Navigation Systems. We look forward to conducting another timely and  efficient on-orbit checkout so that the warfighter and civil users around  the globe can benefit from this satellite's advanced navigational  capabilities as quickly as possible.        The GPS constellation provides critical situational awareness and  precision weapon guidance for the military and supports a wide range of  civil, scientific and commercial functions -- from air traffic control to  the Internet -- with precision location and timing information.        Lockheed Martin and its navigation payload provider ITT of Clifton,  N.J. designed and built 21 IIR spacecraft and subsequently modernized eight  of those spacecraft designated Block IIR-M for the Air Force. The final  satellite, which includes a new demonstration payload that will provide a  temporary on-orbit demonstration for the new civil signal, known as L5, has  just completed final integration testing and is on track for shipment to  Cape Canaveral next month in preparation for launch in June.        The Global Positioning System enables properly equipped users to  determine precise time and velocity and worldwide latitude, longitude and  altitude to within a few meters. Air Force Space Command's 2nd Space  Operations Squadron (2SOPS), based at Schriever Air Force Base, Colo.,  manages and operates the GPS constellation for both civil and military  users.        Lockheed Martin is also leading a team which includes ITT and General  Dynamics in the competition to build the U.S. Air Force's next-generation  Global Positioning System, GPS Block III. The next-generation program will  improve position, navigation, and timing services for the warfighter and  civil users worldwide and provide advanced anti-jam capabilities yielding  improved system security, accuracy and reliability.        A multi-billion dollar development contract is scheduled to be awarded  by the Global Positioning Systems Wing, Space and Missile Systems Center,  Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif. in early 2008.        Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin employs about 140,000  people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design,  development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced  technology systems, products and services. The Corporation reported 2007  sales of $41.9 billion.