New twist in tanker bid

Remember all the hoo-ha earlier this year about the big Air Force contract for refueling tankers? Boeing was considered a shoo-in, and then the team of L.A.-based Northrop and European partner EADS wound up with the job, which has been valued at $35 billion. Then came Boeing's appeal, and then government accountants concluded that Boeing had a point. Then the Air Force reopened the bidding. Remember all that? Well, Aviation Week reports that Boeing might not submit a proposal for the next round. AP says that Boeing will meet with Pentagon officials on Tuesday to discuss the new request for proposals. It appears as if language in the draft request favors Northrop's KC-45 plane over Boeing's KC-767 - based on the amount of fuel that can be carried. From AP:

Boeing could submit a bid based on its larger Boeing 777 commercial aircraft, or a stretched out version of its original design. But some analysts and Boeing allies suggest the tight time frame of the second round of bidding — the Pentagon wants to pick a winner by the end of the year — would make it difficult to re-engineer its proposal.

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Defense analysts say Boeing could register its objections to the new RFP by filing another protest or threatening not to bid in the second round. Either option could drag out development of a plane the Air Force badly needs to replace its 1950s-era fleet of tankers. "Boeing will need to do everything in its power to maximize the competitive balance of that RFP," said Jim McAleese, a defense analyst based in Virginia.