EADS: Tanker process was fair
Published 8:13 am Tuesday, March 11, 2008
EADS chief executive Louis Gallois responded briefly to questions about a controversial U.S. Air Force contract award during the European company’s 2007 earnings report.
EADS and its partner for the deal, Northrop Grumman, beat out the Boeing Co. for a $35 billion deal to supply the Air Force with aerial refueling tankers.
“We have the feeling that first the process was exceptionally transparent, professional and fair,” Gallois said. “And we also have the feeling that we have the best product.”
That isn’t how Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Wash., described it this morning at a Congressional hearing. Dicks said he was tired of the Air Force describing the bidding process in much the same manner as Gallois did (as fair and transparent).
“The words don’t mean anything,” Dicks said. “The actions do.”
Dicks alleges that the Air Force changed its requirements to favor the larger KC-30 offered by Northrop-EADS. The change, Dicks said, hurt Boeing’s KC-767 tanker offering.
Boeing will file a protest over the Air Force’s decision with the Government Accountability Office today. More details certainly will come out over the next few days. In the meantime, let us know whether you think the Air Force bid process has been fair.
