Boeing Company and Lockheed Martin Corporation, two of the Pentagon’s largest military contractors, announced last week that they are teaming up to develop a new bomber for the Air Force.

The companies are likely to face Northrop Grumman as they compete for the program, which will cost tens of billions of dollars. The fleet of B-2 bombers, the most recent bomber program, cost the Pentagon at least $40 billion.

Gen. Peter Pace, a former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and his one-time vice chair, Adm. Ed Giambastiani Jr., have accepted corporate posts just a few months after retiring from the military.

SM&A, a consulting firm that advises defense firms and other companies, said Friday that it hired Pace as president and CEO of a subsidiary, SM&A Strategic Advisors. The 40-year Marine Corps veteran, who retired in October, also joins SM&A’s board of directors.