Let The Tanker Battle Begin, Again

Let the battle begin!

This month, the Pentagon is expected to release its new draft requirements for the 40 billion dollar air refueling tanker contest. Northrop Grumman and EADS will compete against Boeing for the win.

If the Northrop team wins, they'll assemble the tankers at Brookley Field and bring thousands of high paying jobs to the Gulf Coast.

The local team says they're ready for the new fight. Bill Sisson, Executive Director of Mobile Airport Authority, says politics will surely be part of the process again. "I think that the product is always going to be important but the politics are in the middle of this. They have been from the beginning. They'll continue to be in there and that's something that we have to deal with."

Even though Defense Secretary Robert Gates has reportedly said there would be a split buy "over my dead body," Congressman Jo Bonner believes its still a possibility. "Well, I would hate for him to have to go to the great reward and I hope that he will eventually change his mind on that."

A final proposal is expected in January and a winner could be picked as early as summer 2010.

As you recall, Northrop won the contract last year but that quickly changed after Boeing protested. A watchdog group pulled the plug on the deal after finding problems with the evaluation process.

In a related note this week, the World Trade Organization will issue a report about a U.S. complaint that Airbus, a subsidiary of EADS, is receiving financial help from European governments that give it an unfair advantage in the marketplace. A similar report about Boeing receiving help from the U.S. government will be released next month.