BIG GUNS UNITE

Bowing to the realities of the post-Cold War era, giant defense contractors Lockheed and Martin Marietta announced they will merge in a $10 billion deal. The new company, to be called Lockheed Martin, will become the Pentagon's biggest supplier. In April two other other defense companies, Northrop and Grumman, said they were merging. While the deal still must clear anti-trust laws, government objections are unlikely, says TIME Pentagon Correspondent Mark Thompson. "Just last year the Pentagon and Department of Justice did a review of the defense industry and concluded that consolidations were natural," says Thompson. "They paved the way for these mergers."