Tanker News
Pentagon Willing To Extend Tanker Contract By 60 Days
The AP(4/1, Flaherty) reports, "The deadline for bids on a $35 billion contract for refueling jets will be extended by 60 days so the European maker of Airbus can compete, the Pentagon said Wednesday." The extension will come once EADS gives official notification of its intent to compete for the contract. The contract will still be awarded this fall, according to Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell. However, Morrell said, "Nobody should confuse our willingness to change the bid deadline to willingness to change any of the plane's military requirements or the way bids will be evaluated." According to the AP, this extension "s aimed at encouraging competition in a program that critics say has been poorly managed and unfairly favors the Boeing Co." About 120 papers and websites, including the New York Times (4/1, B10), reprint a version of the AP article.
The Washington Post(4/1, A11, Hedgpeth) notes EADS spokesperson Guy Hicks said the company will "consider" the 60 day extension, but EADS has "firmly indicated that a 90-day extension would be the minimum time necessary to prepare a responsible proposal for this $40 billion program."
According to The Hill (4/1, Tiron), "Boeing's congressional supporters are likely to be inflamed at the Pentagon's decision that would allow EADS to compete. They have already taken shots at the European conglomerate over government subsidy issues." Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-KS) said "the Obama administration has caved to European lobbying one day after meeting with French President Nicolas Sarkozy." In contrast, the AFP (4/1) reports, "Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama, an outspoken Republican advocate for EADS, welcomed the move as 'the right decision.'" Morrell "denied that politics had played any role in the latest decision." Bloomberg News (4/1, Ratnam, Capaccio), Reuters (4/1, Shalal-Esa), Wichita Business Journal (4/1, McCoy), and the Financial Times (4/1, Dombey) also covered the story.
