Kennedy Weighs In On Tanker

He might be friends with Washington Congressman Norm Dicks but U.S. Representative Patrick Kennedy seems open-minded about the tanker contest.

The U.S. Representative from Rhode Island toured Mobile's Brookley Field after a fundraiser in the Port City.

Kennedy believes that Northrop Grumman and EADS have a good shot at winning the contest again. The Northrop team beat Boeing last year to build the new fleet of Air Force refuelers. After Boeing protested, the contest was tossed out when a watchdog group found problems with the process.

If they're awarded the 40 billion dollar deal, EADS promises to build cargo planes too. The Democratic leader sees that as a great bonus. "In other words, this is a real add-on whereas we're not just simply keeping existing jobs going. We're adding new jobs to the American workforce. This will bring in a manufacturing facility that will now be building planes long-term for the commercial side of their business that will be exporting to countries all around the world."

According to Northrop Grumman, Rhode Island benefits from a local win.
•Current supplier employees in Rhode Island = 84 employees
•Current economic impact of Rhode Island suppliers = $8.5 million

Northrop officials say if they win the tanker, it would generate an additional $500 thousand in Rhode Island's economic activity

The draft Request for Proposal (RPF) is expected by this Thursday and a winner should be picked by next summer.