Tanker Playing Field Will Be Tilted!

The Air Force released information about the requirements for the new KC-X tanker contest. The actual draft Request for Proposal (RFP) will be available to the public on Friday.

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.

We know that there are 373 different requirements that all the bidding companies must meet. The buy is still 179 planes and the selection process will be more precise and less subjective. The warfighter requirements have not changed but the KC-X should be "ready to go to war on day 1." U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama says he's hasn't read the draft but will fight to make sure it's fair and open. " I have not seen the entire details of it but we want to be sure that the RFP doesn't tilt the playing field for one bidder or another. The Air Force selected the EADS/Northrop team last year as the winner of this contract. I believe if we do this thing right. they'll win again."

As you recall, the Northrop team won the contract last year but Boeing successfully protested that award.

Air Force officials say the new contest will be tilted in favor of the best value for the taxpayer and warfighter. A winner could be picked as early as summer 2010.

Governor Bob Riley released a statement this afternoon about the contest. Riley explains, "I'm glad the process is finally back underway. The Air Force has said replacing the current Eisenhower-era tankers is its top priority. Given a fair competition on a level playing field, we're confident the Northrop team will prevail and we'll be building tankers in Alabama."

Senator Richard Shelby sent the following statement to our newsroom. He was pleased that the Air Force decided not to consider a World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling on European subsidies to Airbus, a subsidiary of EADS. Shelby writes, "“After initial review, the Air Force has made the fair and just determination to not include provisions that would irresponsibly penalize one competitor based on unfounded results of an interim World Trade Organization report. This is the right decision. While the overview reiterated the Air Force and Department of Defense’s commitment to not utilize a lowest-price, technically acceptable acquisition process, the devil is in the details. I look forward to further examining the full draft RFP to ensure that it provides a level playing field for the competitors and the best capability for the warfighter.”

Congressman Jo Bonner weighed in on the new contest as well. Bonner says, “The Pentagon cancelled the tanker competition over one year ago, and today’s release of the draft RFP indicates the process to replace our military’s aging refueling tankers is once again moving forward. In drafting the new rules for the competition, I am encouraged by the Air Force’s decision not to include provisions based on the World Trade Organization’s preliminary report. The American warfighter is in desperate need of modern, new tankers. Some of the tankers in our current fleet are celebrating their Golden Anniversary, certainly not the state-of-the-art aircraft we expect our military to take to the enemy. I am hopeful this draft RFP will maintain a level playing field for both competitors, and I look forward to reviewing the draft RFP in its entirety to ensure the Air Force is conducting a fair, evenhanded competition that brings out the best in both companies and results in a winner that provides the best value to our military.”