Lockheed Martin Day

WHEREAS, Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company celebrates its 50^th Anniversary in the state of Alabama on May 1, 2013; first coming to Huntsville, Alabama, in 1963, Lockheed Martin has seen tremendous growth and development within Alabama and across the nation; and

WHEREAS, Lockheed Martin began work on the U.S. Army’s Homing Overlay Experiment (HOE) in 1978 which was developed by a Lockheed Martin-led team; the HOE destroyed a test missile the Pacific Ocean on June 10, 1984, making history with the first hit-to-kill missile intercept outside of the atmosphere; and

WHEREAS, in 1994, Lockheed opened the 660-acre Courtland, Alabama, facility which later became the site of the Missile Defense Agency’s Single Integration Capability for Targets and Countermeasures; in 1996, Lockheed Martin completed a significant expansion with the construction of Building 403, a 170,000 square-foot facility and another expansion in August 2006, when the company broke ground to construct Building 406 which is a 166,000 square-foot office building; and

WHEREAS, in 2008, Alabama A&M University named Lockheed Martin as its Company of the Year in the Business/Industry category for its long association with the school and support of Alabama A&M University’s outreach efforts and continuing education; and

WHEREAS, after establishing a new Missile Defense Systems operating unit in August 2009, the Missile Defense Agency’s LV-2 intermediate-range ballistic missile target, developed by Lockheed Martin, made its successful maiden mission in January 2010; and

WHEREAS, Lockheed Martin opened its Huntsville Integrated Test Center in March 2011; this center is designed to enable realistic testing of full-scale missile defense systems in a laboratory environment; this facility marked the ninth building in the Bradford Drive campus for Lockheed Martin; and

WHEREAS, in December 2011, Lockheed Martin received a contract to produce the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense Weapon System for the Missile Defense Agency and the United Arab Emirates, making it the first foreign military sale of the this weapon system; and

WHEREAS, with a successful mission in 2012, the Lockheed Martin Targets and Countermeasures Program achieved a record of 43 successful target missions out of 44 since 1996, an unmatched 98 percent mission success rate; and

WHEREAS, Lockheed Martin continues to be a leading aerospace company in Alabama, continuing its focus on delivering high quality products, services and solutions to its consumer base:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Robert Bentley, Governor of Alabama, do hereby proclaim May 1, 2013, as

Lockheed Martin Day

in the state of Alabama and commend Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company for the company’s excellence in the field of aerospace, and on the occasion of its 50^th Anniversary in the state of Alabama.