Aerospace blog

Pentagon kicks off tanker contest today, press conference at noon

The Pentagon may kick off its expedited rebid of a $35 billion Air Force tanker contract as early as today, reports Bloomberg.

The Boeing Co. and Northrop Grumman and its partner EADS are expected to receive the revised specifications for the aerial refueling tanker bid this week. The Department of Defense took over the competition after government auditors found numerous errors in the Air Force’s handling of the initial bid.

Interestingly, the Bloomberg story cites Air Force Acquisitions Secretary Sue Payton as saying the requirements haven’t changed significantly. Defense Secretary Robert Gates had assured Congress that his office, not the Air Force, would handle the rebid.

UPDATE: The Pentagon will hold a press conference today at noon PST.

The press conference will be aired on C-SPAN.

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