SPOTLIGHT: GWEO – protecting Australian sovereignty, with Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control’s James Heading

Joint-capabilities
|
By: Robyn Tongol

In this episode of the Defence Connect Spotlight podcast, James Heading, Director of Programs, Strategic Capabilities Office, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, joins host Liam Garman to provide an update on the Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Enterprise (GWEO), and what the enterprise’s next steps might look like after the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) production.

In this episode of the Defence Connect Spotlight podcast, James Heading, Director of Programs, Strategic Capabilities Office, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, joins host Liam Garman to provide an update on the Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Enterprise (GWEO), and what the enterprise’s next steps might look like after the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) production.

  • Heading and Garman begin the podcast looking at the Guided Weapons Production Capability Risk Reduction Activity and Strategic Partner Services contracts, and how they will build a robust and resilient supply chain to protect Australia’s national sovereignty.
  • They then discuss the Lockheed Martin–Thales teaming agreement overseeing solid rocket motors and warheads, and how the GWEO’s success lies in leveraging partnerships from SMEs to academia and through to global primes.
  • The pair wrap up the podcast discussing what the logical progression for GWEO is after achieving GMLRS production.

Enjoy the podcast,
The Defence Connect team

Want to see more stories from trusted news sources?
Make Defence Connect a preferred news source on Google.
Click here to add Defence Connect as a preferred news source.

Tags:

Listen to previous episodes of the Defence Connect podcast:

Episode 11: THE PROGRESS REPORT: Leadership, mentorship and life at sea – Commander Melanie Lennard on 17 years in the Royal Australian Navy
Episode 10: PODCAST: Australia’s munitions manufacturing push at Land Forces 2026, with NIOA Group’s Robert Nioa
Episode 9: PODCAST: EOS showcases new interceptor and layered drone defence at Land Forces 2026, with Lee Kormany
Episode 8: CONTESTED GROUND: The information advantage – how AI is reshaping influence, competition and power
Episode 7: PODCAST: Next-generation equipment at Land Forces 2026, with Aquaterro’s Graeme Bulte
Episode 6: SPOTLIGHT: Defence electronics supply chains, counterfeit components and shortages
Episode 5: PODCAST: AUKUS, China and Australia’s defence industrial future, with former prime minister Scott Morrison
Episode 4: CONTESTED GROUND: When AI goes rogue – the emerging threat Australia isn’t ready for
Episode 3: PODCAST: Frontier AI, cyber warfare, and defending Australia’s military networks, with Wendi Whitmore and Tom Scully
Episode 2: PODCAST: Australia’s 2026 Intergenerational Report and national security implications, with Phillip Tarrant and Robert Dougherty