USAF’s new tanker: Airbus to manufacture A330s in Alabama, Lockheed Martin to convert to LXMT in Georgia

Lockheed Martin announced today that the LMXT strategic tanker aircraft will be manufactured in Mobile, Alabama, and Marietta, Georgia. Introduced in September 2021, the LMXT is Lockheed Martin’s bid for the U.S. Air Force’s KC-Y “Bridge Tanker” Program competition.

“Establishing this production work in Alabama and Georgia confirms Lockheed Martin’s commitment that the LMXT will be built in America, by Americans, for Americans,” said Lockheed Martin President and CEO James Taiclet. “The LMXT will strengthen global security by enabling our U.S. service members to perform their most critical missions at extended ranges. At home, the LMXT will bolster job and manufacturing growth by leveraging the expertise and talent of a high-tech U.S. workforce in two states that are proven leaders in aviation.”

The LMXT represents the latest chapter in Lockheed Martin’s more than 60-year history of producing and delivering tanker and wide-body aircraft for the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Navy and multiple operators around the world. Built on the combat-proven design of the Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT), the LMXT leverages the known performance and capabilities of the strategic tanker aircraft chosen by 14 nations around the world to currently refuel combat, transport and maritime patrol aircraft for the United States and its allied partners.

“Throughout our 50-year history in the U.S., some of our proudest moments have been supporting our U.S. service members,” said C. Jeffrey Knittel, president and CEO of Airbus Americas. “Our U.S. workforce, which is more than 35% veterans, is eager to see an Air Force tanker join the fleet of Airbus aircraft flying for the U.S. Army, National Guard, Navy and Coast Guard.”

With Lockheed Martin as prime contractor, the LMXT will be built in two phases:

Phase 1: The LMXT will first be manufactured as an A330 airliner at the Airbus facility in Mobile, Alabama, where Airbus A320 and A220 commercial aircraft are built, starting with the A320 in 2015.

Phase 2: The second phase of the manufacturing process includes the conversion of the commercial aircraft into the LMXT tanker at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics’ Marietta, Georgia facility, which currently houses the C-130J Super Hercules final production and F-35 Lightning II center wing assembly lines.

Lockheed Martin and Airbus signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) in 2018 to explore aerial refueling solutions to address any shortfall in refueling capability for the U.S. Air Force, with the MRTT at the center of their discussions.

More than 5,000 Lockheed Martin employees support the work at its Aeronautics facility in Marietta, as well as other facilities in Macon and Kings Bay. A leader in Georgia’s aerospace industry, Lockheed Martin’s Marietta facility has produced some of the best-known military aircraft since 1951, including all production C-130 Hercules (more than 2,600), the C-5 Galaxy/Super Galaxy, P-3 Orion, F-22 Raptor and C-141 Starlifter. More than 4,500 employees currently work at the site.

Airbus has been assembling commercial aircraft in Mobile since 2015, and in the first five years of operation alone had a total economic impact on Alabama of $1.2 billion and more than 15,000 jobs.