Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday approved roughly $540 million for the military to engineer and buy Boeing commercial aircraft to convert for defense uses.
Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Wash., the No. 2 Democrat on the House Appropriations defense subcommittee, called the defense spending measures "a start" that may lead to programs with enormous potential for Boeing.
The airline and aircraft manufacturing industries are experiencing a slowdown and have begun layoffs in the wake of the Sept. 11 hijackings. Boeing announced last month that as many as 30,000 jobs could be eliminated in its commercial aircraft sector, most of them in the Puget Sound region.
The House package recommended $454 million for projects that would convert the 767 commercial jet into a military aircraft, including $150 million to develop and build an Air Force refueling tanker. Other funds are recommended for engineering work to convert the 767 into a surveillance and command-and-control aircraft.
"It puts the House on record in favor of the common wide-body approach, which is something we have not done before," Dicks said.
The full House still must approve the defense spending bill, and the Senate is working on its own version. Differences will have to be ironed out by a conference committee and ultimately approved by the president.
Dicks and other lawmakers, including Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., are still hoping to sell Congress on a 10-year plan for the Air Force to lease 100 air tankers converted from the 767 aircraft, which is built in Everett.
"What we are really talking about is how many fewer people will be laid off," Dicks said. "If we could get to a hundred aircraft, it could be significant."
Paul Nisbet, aerospace analyst at JSA Research in Newport, R.I., cautioned against too much optimism about large, new spending programs, which rarely go through Congress quickly.
As for the spending package approved Wednesday, "that is a drop in the bucket compared with what has disappeared from the commercial aircraft group and the cuts they are making," Nisbet said.
Boeing spokesman Rick Fuller said it was too early to know how many jobs could be preserved.
"The airplanes would be built in the Puget Sound (area), and where they would be modified (for defense uses) would have to be determined," Fuller said. "The good news is that it’s a step forward. These are programs that the military needs, and we are happy to work with the military."
Murray was hopeful that the Senate, sometimes more creative on spending measures, would approve funding for the 100 leased aircraft. But she was concerned about resistance from the Bush administration.
Murray said senators she has talked to recognize the need for military upgrades and jobs, as well as to help a viable aircraft manufacturer maintain its ground.
Other provisions in the House bill for Boeing and the Puget Sound region:
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