Lockheed Martin Pension Calculator: Lump Sum vs Monthly Annuity
Enter the monthly amount from your Lockheed Martin pension statement. The calculator values it at the IRS 417(e) minimum rates, checks the PBGC guarantee if Lockheed still pays you, and shows how a lump sum would hold up if you invested it.
Get retirement alerts
We track IRS rule changes, rate updates, and retirement law changes. One email when something moves enough to affect your math.
How the 417(e) minimum works
A plan doesn't have to offer a lump sum. If it does, IRC 417(e) sets the least it can pay. Each expected monthly payment is weighted by the chance you're alive to get it, using the IRS mortality table, and discounted at one of three segment rates: one for payments under 5 years away, one for 5 to 20 years, and one beyond 20 years. Higher rates mean smaller lump sums.
Each plan picks which month's rates to use. The calculator defaults to the November 2025 rates, which many calendar-year plans use for 2026, but your Lockheed Martin election packet lists the rates your plan actually used. If you're years from your start date, the value today is lower than the value at the start date because you're also discounting the wait and the chance of not reaching it.
Comparing an offer to this number tells you whether the plan is paying at least the legal minimum. It doesn't tell you whether the lump sum is the right choice for you.
The two-stage freeze
Salaried employees hired after December 31, 2005 aren't eligible for Lockheed's defined benefit plans. In June 2014 Lockheed froze its non-union plans in two stages. Pay earned after December 31, 2015 stopped counting toward the benefit, and credited service stopped after December 31, 2019. The salaried plans were fully frozen on January 1, 2020, and salaried employees moved to an enhanced defined contribution plan.
Lockheed's 10-K describes the freeze but not the benefit formula, so the calculator works from the monthly amount on your statement.
Transfers to Athene and the 2023 lump sum offer
In August 2021 Lockheed bought group annuities from Athene covering about $4.9 billion of obligations for about 18,000 U.S. retirees and beneficiaries. Athene started paying them January 1, 2022. In June 2022 it moved about $4.3 billion more for about 13,600 retirees and beneficiaries, paid by Athene from January 1, 2023. Both covered the Salaried Employee Retirement Program and the Aerospace Hourly Pension Plan.
In the fourth quarter of 2023 Lockheed made a voluntary lump sum offer to certain former employees who hadn't started payments, paying $414 million to about 6,500 people. In December 2025 it converted earlier group annuity contracts to buy-outs, transferring $943 million of obligations to the insurer.
PBGC doesn't guarantee an annuity once an insurer has taken it over. Your state's life and health insurance guaranty association backs it instead. In most states that limit is $250,000 in present value for annuities, and some states set it higher.
PBGC protection
For 2026, PBGC guarantees a straight-life annuity starting at 65 up to $7,789.77 a month. The cap is lower if payments start earlier ($6,153.92 at 62, $3,505.40 at 55) and lower again for a joint and 50% survivor annuity ($7,010.79 at 65). The calculator checks your amount against the row for your start age and form.
Sources
For high-stakes decisions
Running six-figure numbers? Get a second opinion.
A fee-only fiduciary can model your specific situation. No products sold. No commissions. Most charge $200-500 for a one-time analysis.
Find a fee-only advisorPensionMath earns no referral fee from NAPFA. We link there because it is the most trusted source for fee-only advisors.
Frequently asked questions
Did Lockheed Martin transfer pensions to Athene?
Yes, twice: about $4.9 billion for about 18,000 retirees and beneficiaries in 2021 and about $4.3 billion for about 13,600 more in 2022, about 31,600 people in all.
When did Lockheed Martin freeze the pension?
In two stages. Pay after December 31, 2015 stopped counting, and credited service stopped after December 31, 2019. The salaried plans were fully frozen on January 1, 2020.
Has Lockheed offered pension lump sums?
Yes. In the fourth quarter of 2023 it offered lump sums to certain former employees who hadn't started payments and paid $414 million to about 6,500 of them.
Is my Lockheed pension PBGC-insured?
If Lockheed's plan still pays you, yes, up to PBGC's limit. If Athene or another insurer took over your annuity, your state guaranty association backs it instead.