| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 FRIDAY, JULY 18, 2008 8:10 pm |
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 Tanker talk: What's in a name? To Northrop, perhaps a lot The Air Force plans to tell Northrop Grumman and EADS to stop referring to their KC-30 tanker as the KC-45, Air Force Magazine reports. But Northrop isn’t budging. The Air Force refers to the fleet of new aerial refueling tankers that it sought during the KC-X contest as KC-45 tankers. When Northrop and EADS won the competition in February, the duo launched advertisements and a Web site using the KC-45 designation for their KC-30, which is based off an Airbus A330 commercial jet. The Air Force has reopened its KC-X competition between the Boeing Co. and Northrop-EADS after government investigators said the agency conducted a flawed competition. The Defense Department will oversee the renewed competition. According to the magazine, Randy Belote, Northrop’s VP for communications, said he was not aware of any directive from the Air Force to stop using the KC-45 designation. He said Northrop remains “under contract with the Air Force on the KC-45 program,” albeit under the stop-work order that was imposed after Boeing’s legal protest in March. “As winner of the KC-X program and while under contract for the KC-45, we have no plans to change the name or nomenclature of our tanker,” he said. Air Force Magazine additionally noted that a "Name that Tanker" competition the Air Force held after awarding the initial contract to Northrop also is on hold. Here are a few other tanker-related stories to check out:
E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Tanker update: European leaders look to Bush for help The leaders of France, Germany and England have lobbied U.S. Pres. George Bush over the ongoing tanker competition between the Boeing Co. and Northrop Grumman and EADS, according to this report. "All three leaders at various times raised the issue," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said. "The president told all three the same thing: He has nothing to do with the contracting process, and the White House has nothing to do with the contracting process." Northrop and its European partner EADS initially won the $35 billion contract to supply the Air Force with aerial refueling tankers. But government auditors found several “significant” errors on the part of the Air Force. The Department of Defense last week announced an expedited rebid of the contract. EADS executive Tom Enders apparently accompanied German Chancellor Angela Merkel on one visit to the White House. "This is astonishing," said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. "We are building tankers to meet the needs of the U.S. military. Now all of a sudden we are supposed to listen to the French, Germans and British about their needs. We should not be influenced by jobs in Germany or elsewhere." ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Boeing Co. Machinists did their best to put on a united front yesterday at a strike sanction vote. Ninety-nine percent of union members voted to give union leaders strike authority if things go sour during contract negotiations with Boeing late next month. Mark Blondin, IAM aerospace coordinator, said that Boeing thinks current union members will "sell out" new hires. The aerospace company wants to eliminate pension plans for new workers and offer them a 401(k) plan instead. “Nobody gets left behind in the Machinists union,” Blondin said. On the topic of wages, district president Tom Wroblewski rallied union members by saying that Boeing’s chief executive Jim McNerney makes more in a few hours than a beginning Machinist will make in a year. Entry level pay – which can be as low as $12.72 an hour – has been a sore spot with the union for years. Herald photographer Kevin Nortz put together a photo gallery from yesterday’s strike sanction. Here are a few signs from the rally:
E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Airbus bags $40 billion in orders at air show Airbus said on Thursday that it won $40 billion in commercial aircraft orders at the Farnborough International Air Show this week. The European jet maker said in a press release that it received 247 firm orders and nine commitments. The total includes an order for 10 A350 jets from Synergy Aerospace, which firmed up a tentative agreement announced in February. Airbus announced that order today along with a memorandum of understanding from an Italian start-up cargo operator, Alis Aerolinee Italiane, for five A330 freighters. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Air China to order 45 Boeing jets Boeing will pick up a $6.3 billion deal from Air China, reports Bloomberg. Air China’s board approved an order of 15 Boeing Co. 777 jets and 30 737 jets with deliveries starting in 2011. The carrier recently ordered 20 Airbus A330 aircraft. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Watch Air Force tanker hearing live The Pentagon official who will lead a tanker rebid competition between Boeing and Northrop Grumman and its partner EADS will testify at 11 a.m. PST at a U.S. House subcommittee hearing. Under Secretary John Young will appear before a U.S. House of Representatives Armed Services subcommittee to answer questions about a $35 billion Air Force aerial refueling tanker contract. Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced yesterday that he was putting Young in charge of the limited re-compete for the contract after the Air Force botched the initial contract process. Auditors with the Government Accountability Office said that Boeing had a good chance at winning the contract, which the Air Force originally awarded to Northrop and EADS, had it not been for Air Force errors. Members of the GAO will testify first, followed by Young. The hearing will be carried live on TV C-SPAN 3 or on the CSPAN Web site. The House subcommittee also will carry a live audiocast of the hearing as well. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Airbus names new A380 manager; EADS stock falls Airbus shuffled around its leaders Thursday, appointing a new head of its A380 aircraft program. The European plane maker put Alain Flourens in charge of the A380 superjumbo jet. Flourens formerly served as executive vice president of the A320 program, Airbus said in press statement. The shares of Airbus’ parent company, EADS, fell 4.6 percent in trading in Paris, after the Pentagon said yesterday that EADS and Northrop would have to rebid a $35 billion tanker contract. Airbus rival Boeing will compete for the lucrative deal as well. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Tanker decision expected this morning The Department of Defense has scheduled a press conference at 10 a.m. PST. Defense Secretary Robert Gates presumably will announce how the Air Force will proceed with a disputed $35 billion aerial refueling tanker contract. Boeing backers are hoping the Air Force will throw out the contract, which it initially awarded to Northrop Grumman and EADS, and start over. Northrop supporters are hoping the Air Force will have the two competitors revise their proposals and re-evaluate the bids. We'll keep you posted. By the way, Herald readers who took an online poll recently suggested the Air Force simply should award the contract to Boeing. Roughly 61 percent of online voters thought Boeing should build the tankers. Sixteen percent thought the Air Force should throw out the contract and completely start over while 14 percent suggested Northrop and EADS should keep the contract. Eight percent said Northrop and Boeing should split the contract, and 2 percent thought the Air Force should use some “other” method of handling the contract. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Airbus slightly leads Boeing in orders, deliveries Airbus still leads Boeing in commercial jet orders and deliveries at the mid-point of 2008 with 487 net orders and 245 deliveries compared to Boeing’s 475 orders and 241 deliveries, Bloomberg reports. The European company may not launch its A320 replacement until 2014, with the new jet entering service in 2018, a French newspaper reported, without citing sources. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
A year ago today, Everett was the center of the aerospace world's attention. That's when Boeing rolled out its new 787 Dreamliner. Had everything gone as planned then, Boeing would have handed over the first mostly composite commercial 787 jet to All Nippon Airways in May. As we know now, the first Dreamliner won't be delivered until the third quarter of 2009. Here's a summary of what's happened since 7-8-07: July 25, 2007: Boeing's stock hits $107.83, a 52-week high, just a few weeks after the display in Everett. August 2007: first signs of trouble appear. September 2007: Boeing delays the 787's first flight until November or December. October 2007: Boeing announces a six-month setback. That same month: Boeing replaces 787 leader Mike Bair with Pat Shanahan. Later in October, Bair faults Boeing's far flung supply chain. December 2007: Boeing officials reconfirm the 787 schedule. January 2008: Boeing announces a three-month delay. February 2008: Boeing stops work on the short-haul 787-3. March 2008: Boeing confirms 787 wing box redesign, but won't confirm new delay despite analyst and customer assertions. Also in March:Boeing buys up half of 787 factory from partner in South Carolina. April 2008: Boeing announces new six-month delay. May 2008: Media get their first look in months at the 787. June 2008: Boeing achieves power-on the 787, but misses some of its new milestones. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Alabama Sen. Richard Shelby urged Defense Secretary Robert Gates to expedite the Air Force’s KC-X aerial refueling tanker replacement in a letter sent today. The Republican senator said that while government auditors may have found flaws in the Air Force’s competition, they did not “contradict the Air Force’s conclusion that the Northrop Grumman/EADS KC-45 was the winner,” Shelby wrote. Northrop/EADS would build their tanker in Mobile, Ala. Last week, supporters of the Boeing Co.’s KC-767 introduced legislation instructing the Air Force either to re-bid the $35 billion deal or to give it to Boeing unless the agency wanted its funding held up by Congress. While the Air Force sorts out its next move, its fleet of KC-135 Stratotankers continues to age. “The average age of our current tanker is now older than the average age of the pilot who flies it,” wrote Alabama’s Shelby. “Not only do we need to quickly deliver new tankers to our airmen, we need to ensure that the replacement aircraft is the best available option for both the warfighter and the taxpayer.” Just last week, Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Ala., called Boeing’s KC-767 a “dinosaur” compared to the Northrop and EADS KC-30. Speaking of dinosaurs … the Press-Register in Mobile came out with this editorial cartoon to illustrate the age of the Air Force’s existing tanker fleet. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
It’s contract negotiating time at the Boeing Co. And the aerospace giant’s labor unions are breaking out the catchy slogans to remind their members, and Boeing, of the issues. Boeing already swapped proposals with the Machinists. The labor group’s contract expires Sept. 3. We told you how talks are progressing in today's Herald. The engineers union, SPEEA, begins negotiations with Boeing this fall. Their contract expires Dec. 1. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Alenia wraps up 787 horizontal stabilizer testing Boeing’s 787 partner Alenia Aeronautica says it has finished destructive testing on the Dreamliner’s horizontal stabilizer. After testing the stabilizer over the past seven months, Italy’s Alenia says the part meets its certification requirements of being able to withstand 150 percent of its maximum load. “Successful completion of the 787 horizontal stabilizer failure test marks the culmination of an innovative design and development activity,” said Randy Harley, Boeing’s vice president and general manager, 787 engineering and technology, in a press statement. ”Working together, the 787 team has once again confirmed the power of an integrated partnership.” Boeing confirmed yesterday that an Alenia employee working in South Carolina caused damage to a 787 center fuselage by not following procedures. The damage on section 44 means that Boeing missed its goal of having all the assemblies for aircraft four in Everett by the end of June. As a result, Boeing is revisiting its already delayed 787 schedule. The company had hoped to begin flight testing on the Dreamliner in the fourth quarter of this year. Boeing plans to put six test aircraft, including Dreamliner four, into flight test. Just last week, Boeing’s chief executive Jim McNerney paid Alenia’s Grottaglie site another visit – his second trip to the Italian supplier. Alenia has pictures from his visit on its Web site. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Bad day for Boeing We all hate Mondays. But Boeing had a bad one yesterday. The company suffered another setback with its already delayed 787. Boeing failed to hit all of its milestones for the month of June for the Dreamliner, missing a shipment on its fourth 787. Boeing didn’t say how the late center fuselage will impact its schedule, particularly its flight test program. While perhaps a minor mishap, the blunder could further erode Wall Street’s confidence. Investors dealt a harsh blow this week to Boeing employees, who were hoping Monday for a surge in Boeing’s stock price. An employee incentive plan, tied to the company’s stock price on June 30, won’t provide quite the boost Boeing and businesses around Snohomish County had hoped. As Boeing’s stock dropped more than $10 since the prior Monday, Boeing employees saw their ShareValue Trust stock distribution plunge from around $3,000 to perhaps $1,800 or less. That’s down significantly from a more than $6,000 payout that workers would have received if Boeing shares had traded above $100 Monday – that’s about where Boeing’s stock was last year. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Boeing 707 scares Aussies The farewell flight of a Boeing Co. 707 by the Royal Australian Air Force struck fear in the hearts of residents in Sydney, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. Office workers near the Sydney harbor said they feared the city was under a terrorist attack, according to the publication. Phillipa Kelly, who works near the harbour, said the noise of the planes stopped work at her office. "It came very close to the building and we all stopped and said: 'Oh my God! What was that noise?'" she said. "There's this big passenger plane that has come very close to our building, and it has a fighter plane following it. "The [passenger] plane had a massive plume of smoke and was losing altitude really quickly." Office workers had no cause for alarm, said government spokesman, Raveena Carroll-Kenney. But Mr (Steven) Gunther said: "To think that seeing a Boeing 707 being tailed by a fighter jet flying at low altitude ... wasn't going to cause concern is deplorable. "In this age of terrorism the defence force should have known better. I have never felt quite so scared." ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Air Force tanker tidbits There has no shortage of ink spilled in newspapers or entries posted to blogs over the failed Air Force tanker contest. In its editorial this weekend, the New York Times urged the Air Force to rebid the competition between the Boeing Co. and Northrop Grumman-EADS. The Times suggests Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who has said he plans to get involved in the Air Force’s response to government auditors, will have to “work especially hard to ensure that the process isn’t further tainted by election-year politics.” The Air Force has 60 days to respond to the Government Accountability Office, which recently sided with Boeing’s protest of a Northrop-EADS win of the $35 billion deal supplying the agency with aerial refueling tankers. The GAO found that the Air Force conducted unfair and unequal talks with the two bidders and made errors that resulted in Boeing receiving a lower score. Don’t forget … We’ve asked to cast your vote in a reader poll on whether the Air Force should split the tanker contract between Boeing and Northrop-EADS. More bad news for the Air Force … It has been ordered to look at lobbying as it pertains to a plan to merge military bases, The Hill reports. An opinion piece in Mobile’s Press-Register agreed with the New York Times that Gates' involvement in the Air Force's decision is important. However, the writer says that while Air Force may have made some procedural mistakes but still picked the right plan. Northrop would build its KC-30 in Mobile. Quote: “WHILE BOEING tanker supporters behave like spoiled children throwing tantrums to try to get their way, there are a couple of positive developments in the tanker contest for Northrop Grumman-EADS and Mobile.” Finally, last week, we told you about the Alabama restaurant owner who has offered to give Boeing the finger. Foosackly’s has drawn a lot of attention both in Alabama and here in Washington state. The business is selling T-shirts and bumper stickers with its “We would like to offer Boeing a finger” message. From WKRG.com News 5 Mobile – Pensacola: ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Airlines looking to retire old jets may have a new market: the housing industry. One California woman is building a home from recycled Boeing Co.747 parts, reports the Associated Press. An environmental architecture firm came up with the idea of building a “green home” using the wings of a 747. "I finally found a client crazy enough and willing enough to do it,” said architect David Hertz. Hertz found a 747at an airplane junkyard in the Mojave Desert and bought it for the bargain price of $40,000. It cost about $200 million new. He had it cut up and trucked more than 100 miles to Camarillo, near Malibu. The plane’s wings will serve as the roof for Francie Rehwald’s house. "I love to recycle, I love green houses and contemporary architecture, and I especially love nature and the natural environment," said Rehwald, whose family owns Mercedes-Benz dealerships in California. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Need more proof that the $35 billion tanker dispute between Boeing, the Air Force and Northrop Grumman-EADS is far from over? Case in point: Alabama Aircraft Industries announced today that it plans to file a lawsuit against the U.S. Air Force for awarding a $1.1 billion contract to Boeing to maintain the agency’s existing fleet of tankers (the ones Boeing wants to replace in the $35 billion deal). Alabama Aircraft will file its lawsuit in U.S. Court of Federal Claims. The company previously had appealed the Air Force decision to the Government Accountability Office (as Boeing appealed the Northrop-EADS win of the KC-X contract). The GAO sided with Alabama Aircraft twice, recommending the Air Force reevaluate the companies’ proposals. Earlier this month, the GAO denied Alabama Aircraft’s third protest. “We believe that the Air Force’s award of the KC-135 maintenance contract to Boeing is significantly flawed,” said Ron Aramini, the aerospace company’s president, in a statement Is this what we should expect in the battle between Northrop-EADS and Boeing? Be sure to vote in our poll which asks whether Boeing and Northrop-EADS should split the contract replacing 179 aerial refueling tankers. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Should Boeing, Northrop-EADS split tanker deal? Yesterday, the GAO released a redacted copy of its 67-page ruling, sustaining Boeing's protest of an Air Force tanker contract to Northrop Grumman and EADS. In today's Herald, we told you some new details, including the GAO's implication that the Northrop proposal didn't meet all of the Air Force's specifications. The Air Force says it desperately needs new tankers after years of contract mishaps and delays. Both Boeing and Northrop-EADS say they can deliver quickly. The Air Force has 60 days to respond. What should the Air Force do next? ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Boeing, Airbus to lose orders on fuel; ILFC wants 300 jets – reports The Boeing Co.’s stock has hit a new 52-week low in early morning trading today as Goldman Sachs cuts its stock rating and a report raises concerns about its commercial jet backlog. Goldman Sachs cut Boeing's rating to "sell" from "neutral" causing Boeing’s shares to drop more than 5 percent, trading below $71 for the first time since mid-March. "We expect the weak macroeconomic backdrop and record fuel prices to hurt airlines and translate to a significant slowing in the order book," said Goldman analyst Richard Safran in a research note published on Wednesday, reports Reuters. This couldn't come at a worse time for Boeing employees, who will receive a share payout that's based on Boeing's stock price as of June 30. The Wall Street Journal published this story that says airlines could cancel or delay up to a third of the orders on Boeing’s and Airbus’s backlogs due to high fuel costs. Here’s what Boeing’s Scott Carson told the WSJ on the matter: "I don't think I've talked to any airline that believes this is a phenomenon that can be sustained given today's business model," he says. "We haven't seen any cancellations," he adds, "but we have had a couple of carriers ask to move their deliveries out of 2008 and into later years." International Lease Finance Corp.’s chairman Steven Udvar-Hazy told the newspaper that about 25 to 30 percent of the orders on the books were placed by airlines not simply to replace older aircraft but to help grow their routes. Those orders, he said, could be subject to the “flake-out factor” if fuel prices continue to rise. With more and more airlines becoming strapped for cash to buy jets, they’ll turn to leasing companies like ILFC for help. ILFC may look to place as many as 300 orders for new jets with Boeing and Airbus, reports Bloomberg. The company could buy 150 single aisle jets from both Airbus and Boeing, placing those orders as soon as next month at the Farnborough air show. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Giving Boeing a finger – Mobile business offer A Mobile, Ala.-based company says it wants to give Boeing "a finger." The owner of Foosackly’s, a chicken finger restaurant, hasn’t been too pleased with the Boeing Co.’s efforts to strip Northrop Grumman and EADS of a $35 billion Air Force tanker contract. The duo would assemble their tanker in Mobile. The restaurant owner took out a billboard with his message: "We would like to offer Boeing a finger." Here’s a report from WKRG.com News 5: ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Airbus ships first jet parts to China for assembly Airbus single-aisle A320 jets soon will begin rolling off the production line in China. The European jet maker announced today that it has sent the first aircraft segments to its factory in Tianjin, China. "The transportation of these aircraft sub-assemblies marks another important milestone for our assembly line in China. The construction work on the site is progressing successfully and the training of the Chinese workers at our production facilities in Toulouse and Hamburg is going very well," said Alain Flourens, Airbus vice president A320 program, in a press statement. The final assembly line in China aids Airbus’ efforts to boost production on its A320 jet. It also gives Airbus entry into the Chinese market, which Airbus believes will need 2,670 new jets in the next 20 years. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Aviation warning: graphic violence ahead No, supermodel Naomi Campbell hasn’t hit any more airport cops or pitched a hissy fit to airline flight attendants lately. (Campbell was fined recently for her antics in April.) As part of its "fees don’t fly with us" advertising campaign we’ve mentioned previously, Southwest Airlines continues to get its digs in at the rest of the aviation industry with ads that warn of graphic wallet violence committed by other carriers. Southwest pokes fun at the new fees that other airlines are imposing in this commercial. You can check out more of the airline's ads at swamedia.com. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Re-bid will end Air Force tanker dispute, readers say A re-bid of the U.S. Air Force tanker contract will settle the dispute between Boeing and Northrop Grumman/EADS, say Herald readers. Last week, before the GAO sustained Boeing’s protest, we asked readers how the tanker fiasco would end. We know now, of course, that the GAO backed Boeing’s complaint and told the Air Force it re-open discussions with the bidders. The Air Force has 60 days to make its move. And the end to this is nowhere in sight. In case you missed it, here’s how you voted: Poll question: How will the U.S. Air Force tanker contract be decided? By a re-bid process: 38 percent By the GAO: 23 percent By Congress: 21 percent By the courts: 8 percent Will it ever end?: 11 percent ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Boeing Machinists: 'Shame on McCain' When the Boeing Co. Machinists rallied over the GAO’s tanker ruling last week, they booed only twice: when Sens. Murray and Cantwell admitted to flying back from D.C. in an Airbus jet and whenever Sen. John McCain’s name surfaced. After the senators vowed to get to the bottom of the Air Force’s errors, one Machinist yelled “Shame on McCain.” Later, Rick Bender, president of the Washington State Labor Council, suggested McCain was running for president of the wrong country. As Reuters reported on Sunday, the Republican presidential candidate already is taking heat from Democrats about his role in the Air Force selecting Northrop Grumman and EADS over Boeing to replace 179 aerial refueling tankers. Despite their anger with McCain, Machinists have not yet embraced Democrat Sen. Barack Obama. Gov. Christine Gregoire was traveling back from meeting with Obama and couldn’t be at the tanker rally. A member of her staff noted that Obama also sent his best regards. This wasn’t met with applause. As you may remember, the Machinists backed Hillary Clinton for the Dems’ nominee. And international Machinists president, Thomas Buffenbarger, went off on Obama back in February and more recently in April, as we reported earlier. Obama recently met with the leaders of the 56 unions of the AFL-CIO. Buffenbarger was the only leader absent, reported the Washington Post. While the Machinists may still be holding out for a Clinton miracle, their behavior toward Obama is puzzling. Who are they going to vote for? McCain? That’s crazy talk. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Want to learn more about the process of turning the power on Boeing’s first 787? The company has added information, including brief videos and interactive graphics, to their New Airplane Web site. If you missed Boeing's 787 fatigue test plane rolling out of the factory this weekend, check out the Herald's photos. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
The Boeing Co. brought out its 787 fatigue test airplane Friday evening from its factory in Everett. It looks similar to the static test plane but will be used to show how the 787 will age in service. In the process of moving the fatigue aircraft, Boeing wheeled out the first Dreamliner again. The company announced Friday it finished the process of powering on the first 787. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Northrop: Still under Air Force tanker contract As Boeing Co. workers prepare to rally today in Everett, Northrop Grumman noted that it remains under contract to replace the Air Force’s aerial refueling tanker despite Boeing’s recent GAO win. “We respect the GAO process and are confident the Air Force will appropriately address its recommendations,” said Paul Meyer, Northrop Grumman vice president of Air Mobility Systems and KC-45 program manager, in a press statement. “However, the GAO report does not change the fact that a new fleet of tankers is needed now, and Northrop Grumman is ready now,” said Meyer. “Northrop Grumman remains under contract and remains ready to serve with the most modern, most capable tanker in the world.” “Any significant delay only punishes the men and women who are forced to fly an aging fleet,” he added. Boeing’s supporters Sens. Murray and Cantwell will walk the 767 line this afternoon. Yesterday, one of Northrop’s backers in Congress, Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions, told the Senate that it is critical “that politics not infect the process and that they select the best aircraft for the military.” ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Boeing powers on the first Dreamliner Boeing said this morning that it has completed the process of turning electrical power on its 787 Dreamliner jet. Next up? Ground tests. And in the fourth quarter, Boeing plans to put the first 787 in the air. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
For a lot of reasons, yesterday was an odd day. Certainly, top on the list of oddities was the GAO’s decision to back Boeing in the tanker decision. Rather, its decision to side so strongly with Boeing and have such sharp criticism for the Air Force was surprising. But several minutes after I received notification Wednesday morning of the GAO’s ruling, I got an e-mail from Northrop Grumman with details for the groundbreaking ceremony for its tanker facility in Alabama. I suppose they had sent it as a show of how confident Northrop was in its win. The defense contractor previously had scheduled the groundbreaking despite Boeing’s protest. Today, Northrop has deferred the event, scheduled for June 28. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! Tanker reactions from Texas, Alabama, Kansas Here are a few more reactions from across the nation on yesterday’s GAO ruling: An editorial from the Press-Register says Mobile, Ala., still has a good chance at becoming an aerospace powerhouse. The Birmingham News reports the GAO decision puts about 1,500 jobs in jeopardy. Politicians call it a “great day” for Kansas in The Wichita Eagle. And the Kansas delegation celebrated with a “vindication” sign in a photo in today’s edition of The Hill. Texas-based Vought could benefit from the GAO ruling in this Bloomberg story. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW!
Yesterday’s news that the GAO had sided with Boeing’s protest of an Air Force tanker contract stirred up the markets. In Paris, shares of EADS dropped as much as 4.4 percent before stabilizing down 2.4 percent. EADS and its partner Northrop Grumman initially won the $35 billion deal supplying tankers to the U.S. Air Force. But losing bidder Boeing successfully protested the Air Force’s decision to the Government Accountability Office. The GAO told the Air Force is should open the contract up again after making several errors in the process. Boeing’s stock is up nearly 3 percent this morning. A senior Airbus executive this morning suggested the decision was political and would impact how the European jet maker does business in America. "It's not pleasant to see a bit of a political environment getting a foothold," Airbus Executive Vice President for Strategy and Planning Christian Scherer told Dow Jones Newswires. "I think we will have to draw some conclusions on the way to conduct business," in the U.S., Scherer said. The GAO’s decision could impact jobs at an Airbus factory in the U.K., according to this BBC report. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment NEW! |
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