EVERETT — The idea of splitting a multibillion-dollar tanker contract between the Boeing Co. and Northrop Grumman just won’t go away.
The chairman of a House defense appropriations committee said he may insert language into a bill requiring a split of the lucrative deal, despite Pentagon opposition. The move would extend production of Boeing’s 767 commercial jet, on which its tanker is based, here in Everett. But it would also give Boeing’s rival and Northrop’s partner, EADS, a foot in the door with U.S. military acquisitions.
Rep. John Murtha, D-Penn., told reporters in Washington, D.C., on Sunday that the need to replace the Air Force’s existing fleet of aerial refueling tankers has increased with the administration’s efforts in Afghanistan. In splitting the contract, Murtha hopes to avoid another lengthy delay to a program that has been plagued by setbacks.
The Air Force is expected to kick off its latest tanker competition this spring, pitting Boeing versus Northrop and EADS. The pair had been awarded the contract last year, but Boeing protested the Air Force’s decision. Government auditors sided with Boeing.
The Air Force initially sought to replace its Eisenhower-era KC-135 Stratotankers after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. But the contract, which only Boeing bid for, was nullified when it was discovered the company offered a weapons buyer jobs for her and her family in exchange for steering the deal Boeing’s way.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates repeatedly has said he opposes splitting the contract. Doing so, he says, would require the Air Force to maintain two different sets of aircraft and two training programs, costing taxpayers more in the long run.
Champions for Boeing also oppose splitting the contract. During a tour of Boeing’s 767 line in Everett, Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Wash., told reporters that the government should strive to keep jobs in the country. Northrop and EADS would build their initial tankers in Europe, where EADS is headquartered.
“I don’t see how we could go build them in France … when we’ve got workers here,” Dicks said.
Northrop and EADS defenders, however, argue that they would create jobs in Alabama, where their KC-30 eventually would be assembled. EADS is the parent company for Airbus, Boeing’s competitor in the commercial aircraft market.
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