BAE Systems protests U.S. Navy contract award to Raytheon

Britain's BAE Systems PLC on Thursday filed a formal protest against the U.S. Navy's decision to award a contract for a next-generation electronic jammer to Raytheon Co , a U.S. spokesman for the company said.

BAE spokesman Brian Roehrkasse said BAE decided to lodge a protest with the U.S. Government Accountability Office because it had "concerns with the Navy's evaluation of our offering."

"The solution we put forward would provide the U.S. Navy with an affordable and effective way to significantly enhance current capabilities and protect our aircraft, ships, and armed forces," Roehrkasse said.

Raytheon on July 8 beat out incumbent Northrop Grumman Corp and BAE Systems to win a $279 million deal to develop a new electronic jammer, a deal analysts said could eventually be worth billions of dollars.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal-Esa; Editing by Michael Urquhart)