In the realm of big-government satellite manufacturing, Lockheed Martin Space Systems is the undisputed king, having garnered the lion's share of the plum contracts for recapitalizing the major operational U.S. government constellations. In the commercial satellite sector, not so much. Once a market pioneer, Lockheed Martin in recent years has barely averaged one commercial contract annually. This year the company suffered two high-profile competitive defeats: the JCSat-14 satellite for Sky Perfect JSat of Tokyo and the Falcon Eye imaging satellite for the United Arab Emirates. Losing JCSat-14 had to hurt: Sky Perfect JSat, Asia's biggest commercial satellite operator, had previously ordered seven satellites from Lockheed Martin.
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