BRIEFLY / AEROSPACE : Lockheed to Lose $42 Million in Bonus Fees

Lockheed Martin Corp. will forfeit $42 million of $46.3 million in bonus fees set aside for the Titan IV-B missile program because it was responsible for an April 30 launch failure, the Air Force said. The failure resulted in the loss of an $800-million military communications satellite when Lockheed Martin didn’t find and correct a software programming mistake made in early February by a software engineer for its Denver-based Astronautics division, the Air Force said. Lockheed had already taken a charge in anticipation of the decision, a company spokesman said. Under a new contract that Lockheed Martin signed in April with the Air Force, the Astronautics unit stands to forfeit as much as $84 million more in profit when the Titan production contracts end in 2002. Lockheed Martin shares rose 63 cents to close at $35.88 on the New York Stock Exchange.