Cuts in defense spending as part of the sequester could ripple to suppliers outside the U.S.

Defense contractors are already cutting back as the war in Afghanistan winds down.

The big defense contractors -- including Lockheed Martin and Pratt & Whitney -- say they may have to send out mass layoff notices to their employees in a few months. That's because they're worried that hundreds of billions of dollars in expected cuts to the Pentagon's budget will have a big effect on them.

With the super committee looking less and less likely to succeed, defense contractors are planning for the worst: automatic cuts.