World’s biggest defense contractors

The BAE-EADS merger would have resulted in the world’s biggest defense contractors by sales. Here’s a look at the top 10 players in the world of weapon systems, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

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1. Lockheed Martin (United States)

An F-35 Lightning II fighter jet manufactured by Lockheed Martin makes a test flight over Fort Worth. Bethesda-based Lockheed Martin is the world's biggest defense contractor. The company made $35.7 billion in arms sales in 2010.

/ U.S. Air Force via Bloomberg News

2. BAE Systems (Britain)

This artist's rendering shows the Astute class nuclear submarine, which is produced by the BAE Systems plant in Cumbria, England. BAE Systems’ 2010 arms sales totaled $32.9 billion.

/ AP

3. Boeing (United States)

A Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker tanker lowers its boom. Boeing made $31.4 billion in arms sales in 2010.

Paul J. Richards / AFP/Getty Images

4. Northrop Grumman (United States)

Wes Bush is chief executive, chairman and president of Northrop Grumman, which is based in Fairfax. Northrop Grumman made $28.2 billion in arms sales in 2010.

Jeffrey MacMillan / For The Washington Post

5. General Dynamics (United States)

The littoral combat ship USS Independence was produced by General Dynamics. Falls Church-based General Dynamics made arms sales worth $23.9 billion in 2010.

Dennis Griggs / U.S. Navy via AP

6. Raytheon (United States)

British air force cadets look at a Raytheon exhibit in Farnborough, England. Raytheon, which manufactures electronic and missile systems, made $23 billion in sales in 2010.

Lefteris Pitarakis / AP

7. European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co. (France and Germany)

An EADS tanker refuels an F-16 fighter jet. Franco-German company EADS recorded $16.4 billion in arms sales in 2010.

/ EADS via AP

8. Finmeccanica (Italy)

An AgustaWestland EH101 helicopter made by Finmeccanica aerospace and defence group, flies over New York. The Italian defense company made $14.4 billion in arms sales in 2010.

/ AP

9. L-3 Communications (United States)

Ron Taylor, site manager for L-3 Communications at Vance Air Force Base in Enid, Okla., sits in a simulator. L-3 Communications, formerly Titan Corp., made $13.1 billion in arms sales in 2010.

Billy Hefton / Enid News-Eagle via AP

10. United Technologies (United States)

A Black Hawk S-70i helicopter, manufactured by United Technologies.sits on display ar the Farnborough International Air Show in Farnborough, England. United Technologies rounds out the Top 10 with $11.4 billion in arms sales in 2010.

Chris Ratcliffe / Bloomberg

FEATURED PHOTO GALLERIES

epa03708924 Franziska (C) wears a helmet and carries a shield during the recreation of The Battle of the Teutoburg Museum in Bramsche, Germany, 20 May 2013. The everyday life of Romans and the Germanic people is depicted at Museum Park Kalkriese during the Romans and Germanic people days. EPA/Friso Gentsch

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A Burrowing owl tries to perch on a protective rope in a public park in Cooper City, Fla. Monday, May 20, 2013 as rain falls. (AP Photo/J Pat Carter)

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ANNAPOLIS, MD - MAY 20: The Herndon Monument Climb is the traditional culmination of plebe year at the United States Naval Academy. The plebes climb to the top of the lard-covered 21 foot high monument and remove the 'dixie cup' hat at the top replacing it with an upperclassman's hat. After completing this, the freshmen are called 'fourth class midshipmen.' This class completed the task in 1 hour 32 minutes and 43 seconds. The hat was placed by Patrick Lien from Orlando. (Photo by Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post)

The Herndon Climb

The Herndon Monument climb is the traditional culmination of plebe year at the U.S. Naval Academy.

MOORE, UNITED STATES: Joey Dean displays some two dozen eggs he found among the remains of his friend Lee Tesney's house in Moore, OK, 06 May 1999. Official sources indicated that 41 people died and more than 500 people were injured in what was classified as an F5 tornado, the most severe type of tornado, with winds of more than 250 miles per hour which ravaged the southern Oklahoma City region 03 May. (ELECTRONIC IMAGE) AFP PHOTO/Hector MATA (Photo credit should read HECTOR MATA/AFP/Getty Images)

Okla. tornado loosely followed path of 1999 twister

Monday’s powerful tornado in suburban Oklahoma City loosely followed the path of a killer twister that slammed the area in May 1999.

Lea Bessinger salvages a picture of Jesus as she and her son Josh Bessinger sort through the rubble of the elder Bessinger's tornado-ravaged home Tuesday, May 21, 2013, in Moore, Okla. A huge tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburb Monday, flattening an entire neighborhoods and destroying an elementary school with a direct blow as children and teachers huddled against winds. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Tornado near Oklahoma City causes more damage

Rescue workers are searching for survivors after a twister carved a long path of destruction in a suburb of Oklahoma City. It was part of the...

FILE - In this undated publicity file photo, members of the Doors, from left, John Densmore, Robbie Krieger, Ray Manzarek and Jim Morrison, pose for a portrait. Manzarek, the keyboardist who was a founding member of The Doors, has died at 74. Publicist Heidi Robinson-Fitzgerald says in a news release that Manzarek died Monday, May 20, 2013, at the RoMed Clinic in Rosenheim, Germany, surrounded by his family. (AP Photo, File)

Ray Manzarek, founding member of the Doors, dies at 74

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US actress Rosario Dawson smiles on May 20, 2013 as she arrives for the screening of the film 'Wara No Tate' (Shield of Straw) presented in Competition at the 66th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes. Cannes, one of the world's top film festivals, opened on May 15 and will climax on May 26 with awards selected by a jury headed this year by Hollywood legend Steven Spielberg. AFP PHOTO / ALBERTO PIZZOLIALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP/Getty Images

Eye on entertainment

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A man walks on sulphur and mineral salt formations near Dallol in the Danakil Depression, northern Ethiopia April 22, 2013. The Danakil Depression in Ethiopia is one of the hottest and harshest environments on earth, with an average annual temperature of 94 degrees Fahrenheit (34.4 Celsius). For centuries, merchants have travelled there with caravans of camels to collect salt from the surface of the vast desert basin. The mineral is extracted and shaped into slabs, then loaded onto the animals before being transported back across the desert so that it can be sold around the country. Picture taken April 22, 2013. REUTERS/Siegfried Modola (ETHIOPIA - Tags: BUSINESS SOCIETY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

ATTENTION EDITORS: PICTURE 2 OF 30 FOR PACKAGE 'ETHIOPIA'S ANCIENT SALT TRAIL'
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Ethiopia’s salt trail

For centuries, merchants have traveled to Ethiopia’s Danakil Depression with caravans of camels to collect salt from the surface of the vast desert basin. The mineral is extracted...

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