Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

July 24, 2008 11:23:21 PM CDT

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

US, Euro Alliance Landed Air Force Deal for Airbus

Posted Mar 3, 08 4:00 AM CST in Business 

(Newser) – Years of careful strategy and an alliance between executives was the key to Airbus nailing a $40 billion deal to build Air Force planes, reports the Wall Street Journal. The Pentagon’s decision last week is “a transformational shift in the way weapons systems are acquired. It’s an acknowledgment that globalization is real," said Ralph Crosby Jr., the top US executive for Airbus parent EADS.

The determined working relationship between Crosby, a French-speaking West Point grad, and former Northrup Grumman aircraft systems chief Scott Seymour is largely credited with landing the deal. Boeing was favored to win the contract, but Pentagon officials liked the versatility of Airbus’ refueling tanker, which can carry 7,000 more gallons of fuel and 30 more people than the Boeing aircraft. The deal could open the path to a fortune in other contracts for the companies from the international defense community.

Source Wall Street Journal

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • Pentagon to Re-Open $35B Air Force Tanker Bid

    Jul 9, 08 12:16 PM CDT
    Pentagon to Re-Open $35B Air Force Tanker Bid The Pentagon will re-open a $35 billion contract to build the Air Force's fleet of new refueling tankers and pick a new winner by the end of the year, congressional sources say. The Office of the Secretary of Defense—not the Air Force—will oversee the new competition between Boeing Co. and a team led by Northrop Grumman Corp. More »

  • GAO Backs Boeing's Protest of $40B-Deal

    Jun 18, 08 1:54 PM CDT
    GAO Backs Boeing's Protest of $40B-Deal Congressional investigators today seconded Boeing's protest of the US Air Force's decision to award a lucrative tanker contract to a competitor and its European partner, the Seattle Times reports. The Government Accountability Office said it found "a number of significant errors that could have affected the outcome of what was a close competition between Boeing and Northrop Grumman," and recommended that the service hold a new competition. More »

  • Tough Calls Await on Boeing Defense Bid

    Jun 12, 08 3:24 PM CDT
    Tough Calls Await on Boeing Defense Bid The Government Accountability Office must rule by next Thursday on Boeing’s appeal of an Air Force deal granting European rival Airbus a multi-billion dollar tanker contract—and CEO Jim McNerney has a tough call ahead if Boeing loses, the Seattle Times reports. He can ground the appeal, or draw more attention to political concerns neither the military nor GAO was allowed to consider. More »

  • For Boeing, Warplanes Are Becoming History

    Apr 7, 08 3:34 PM CDT
    For Boeing, Warplanes Are Becoming History As Boeing makes fewer military aircraft and more hardware systems, its commercial and defense arms look increasingly like separate companies, the Seattle Times reports. "These are two legs walking in opposite directions," one analyst says. While airplanes continue to dominate its commercial side, the company, once a military-aircraft mainstay, now lacks a single prime contract for future warplanes. More »

  • Congress Will Nix Airbus Deal, Boeing Says

    Mar 19, 08 6:44 AM CDT
    Congress Will Nix Airbus Deal, Boeing Says Boeing isn't taking its loss of a $35 billion military contract to Northrop Grumman and Airbus lying down, Reuters reports. A company vice president said he was "as confident as he could be" that Congress would overturn the Air Force's decision to buy refueling tankers from Boeing's European rival. The firm charges that the Air Force broke federal and military rules in the decision-making process and ended up choosing a riskier plane than Boeing was offering. More »

In this photo released by the US Department of Defense a B-2 Spirit multi-role bomber conducts air refueling operations with a KC-135 Stratotanker over the Pacific on April 4, 2005. The Air Force on Friday...   (Associated Press)
This image provided by Northrop Grumman shows the first KC-45A aerial refueling tanker taking off on its maiden flight on Sept. 25, 2007. The Air Force on Friday Feb. 29, 2008 awarded Northrop Grumman...   (Associated Press)
Boeing union workers Sandy Hastings, left, of Everett, Wash., and David Henry of Puyallup, Wash., protest the U.S. Air Force's decision to award a fuel tanker contract to Airbus-Northrop Grumman at the...   (Associated Press)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Related links

Threads (1 of 4)

Tags

Pentagon  • Boeing  • airplane  • Airbus  • Air Force  • Northrop Grumman  • EADS


Loading...

Loading...

Today's Most Popular


Other Business Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Newser gives you more news in less time. We search for the best and most important stories all over the web, read them for you, and deliver concise and sharp summaries—along with links to the full text. Newser provides a way to stay on top of an ever-expanding horizon of news and opinion—politics, sports, business, trends, technology, personalities, crimes, and controversies. Newser keeps you not just better informed, but, with our signature graphic interface and smart condensed format, more enjoyably informed.

Learn more »