EADS beats Boeing to US tanker deal

"It's just a disaster," said Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Wash., one of Boeing's biggest supporters in Congress.

"I'm extremely disappointed," Dicks said. "It's just one of the worst things in my whole life. I am just shocked over this."

Gov. Chris Gregoire called the Air Force decision unfortunate for Boeing and the state of Washington.

"Boeing and its workers build the best planes in the world. They will continue to enjoy great success with their 787 Dreamliner and other innovative products still to come," she said, calling the Chicago-based company a valued corporate citizen of her state.

Boeing, Washington state's largest private employer, would have built the tankers, based on its 767 jetliners, at Everett, Wash.

In a joint statement, the state's two senators and six of its nine House members said they were outraged by the choice of a European company "and its foreign workers" to provide a tanker to the U.S. military.

"This is a blow to the American aerospace industry, American workers and America's men and women in uniform," said the statement, which was issued by Dicks, Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, and Reps. Rick Larsen, Jay Inslee, Adam Smith, Jim McDermott and Dave Reichert. All but Reichert are Democrats.

"Boeing has 75 years of experience in building the tankers our military flies. Washington state's workers are second to none and so is their product," the statement said.

"At a time when our economy is hurting, this is a blow not only to our state, but the more than 40 states across the country who would help build this national plane. We will be asking tough questions about the decision to outsource this contract. We look forward to hearing the Air Force's justification."

"I'm extremely disappointed," Dicks said. "It's just one of the worst things in my whole life. I am just shocked over this."

A top-ranking House Democrat said Wednesday that Congress may block funding of the U.S. Air Force's $35 billion contract to overhaul the service's tanker fleet that was awarded to a partnership of Northrop Grumman Corp. and the European-based parent of Airbus SAS if the Air Force can't explain why it is outsourcing the mammoth contract, in part, to a foreign company.
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Boeing officials claim that the project would fund 40,000 U.S. jobs, while most of the jobs in the Northrop/EADS proposal would go overseas.
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The congressional outrage in some ways has a similar feel to the 2006 controversy spurred by a United Arab Emirates company's attempt to take over management of six U.S. ports, Murtha said. The deal was scrapped under congressional and public fury of placing the security of the nation's ports into the hands of a country with questionable ties to terrorism.

With the tanker deal, Murtha expressed indignation that European members of NATO failed to help provide 2,700 additional troops needed in Afghanistan but were still being rewarded with one of the most lucrative contracts in U.S. military history. One Washington state lawmaker has collected thousands of signatures in an online petition protesting the award to the Northrop/EADS group.

The EADs teams have always come up with newer designs (whereas Boeing relied on an existing frame). However, doesnt EADS seem to be the master of never quite meeting deadlines?

Unlike AIrbus, whose rep , as defined by recent performance in the "Superliner" category, has been nothing less than sterling.
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WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Air Force will brief Boeing tomorrow on the decision to spend $35 billion for air tankers using Airbus planes.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008 - 10:29 AM EST
Boeing calls for Air Force review of tanker contract awarded to NorthropBusiness Courier of Cincinnati
A decision on a military tanker aircraft that could mean billions for GE Aviation, is being questioned by Boeing Co.

Boeing wants an immediate debriefing from U.S. Air Force officials over their decision to award the KC-X tanker contract to a team composed of Northrop Grumman Corp. and European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co., the French-German parent of Airbus.

That award could mean billions for Evendale-based GE Aviation, which makes the CF6 engines that power the Northrop/EADS tanker.

Boeing said the Air Force has indicated the briefing will not occur before March 12, a delay Boeing says is unusual. The contract was awarded to Northrop and EADS on Friday.

"Consistent with past practice and recent experience, we would expect this briefing to occur within days, not weeks, of the selection announcement," Mark McGraw, vice president of Boeing's 767 tanker programs, said in a statement. "Given that we are already seeing press reports containing detailed competitive information, we feel that our request is more than fair and reasonable."

The Air Force placed an initial aerial refueling tankers aircraft order valued at about $35 billion, with a larger second order bringing the value to $100 billion over 25 to 30 years.

The KC-X project will replace the Air Force's fleet of 179 KC-135 refueling planes. The current KC-X deal is the first of an expected three-phase deal that would call for more than 500 planes.

Boeing proposed a derivation of its 767 jetliner. Los Angeles-based Northrop Grumman and Airbus submitted a bid based on Airbus's A330 commercial aircraft, which Northrop calls the KC-30.

McGraw said Boeing's bid appeared to be less than Northrup-EADS' bid and assumed its offering was more cost effective from a lifecycle standpoint due to the lower fuel burn of the 767. McGraw also said he was confused by reports indicating that Boeing was judged a higher risk than the Northrup-EADS team.

"Northrop and EADS are two companies that will be working together for the first time on a tanker, on an airplane they've never built before, under multiple management structures, across cultural, language and geographic divides," McGraw said. "We do not understand how Boeing could be determined the higher-risk offering."

The Air Force said the winner was selected a "best value" determination based on five factors: mission capability, proposal risk, past performance, cost/price, and an integrated fleet air refueling assessment (performance in a simulated war scenario).

After the contract was awarded to Northrup-EADS on Friday, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which represents nearly 720,000 members including 35,000 Boeing employees across the country, expressed outrage over the decision.

IAM General Vice President Rich Michalski said in a statement: "President Bush and his administration have today denied real economic stimulus to the American people and chosen instead to create jobs in Toulouse, France."

Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC) is a $32 billion global defense and technology company whose 120,000 employees provide systems, products, and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide.

A unit of Chicago-based Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA), Integrated Defense Systems is one of the world's largest space and defense businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions. Headquartered in St. Louis, Integrated Defense Systems is a $32.4 billion business with 72,000 employees worldwide. The unit also has significant operations in Southern California.

GE Aviation is a unit of General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE), based in Fairfield, Conn.

Unlike AIrbus, whose rep , as defined by recent performance in the "Superliner" category, has been nothing less than sterling.

Im still more ineterested in specs than spin guys. head to head , Ive been told fuel economy, range, and payload. If thats true, then Boeing made a huge tactical error. If the specs are close, then Id want to see what alternative materials and design changes would have wrought.

I know its Monday morning Qbacking, but I seriously doubt that those on this thread were following the story while it was under review. What were reading now is packaged stuff from news wires.

If this procurement is to be overturned , it is much more likely the Democrats will do it in the next administration -- the Dems are in a seriously protectionist mood right now. It will be amusing to watch the Europeans discover that they really won't like many of the "changes" ("yes we can") that may be in the offing.

Boeing's tanker bid damaged when Air Force changed criteria, Dicks says

The Associated PressPublished: March 8, 2008

Boeing Co. said late Friday that it will give "serious consideration" over the weekend to filing a formal protest of the Air Force's decision to award a $35 billion (€22.7 billion) tanker contract to European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. and Northrop Grumman Corp.

Following a debriefing by Air Force officials Friday, Boeing said in a statement that reports of it losing the competition by a wide margin are inaccurate.