Article Posted on : - Mar 20, 2010

USAF KC-767 Night Refuelling aircraft

WASHINGTON (AFP): The US Air Force tanker bidding contest against Boeing heated up, with Airbus parent EADS mulling a proposal and Russia's state firm UAC gearing up for one next week.

EADS opened the door to a bid against US arch-rival Boeing for the 35-billion-dollar aerial refueling tanker contract on signs of Pentagon willingness to extend the May deadline.

The European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company's expressed interest in the competition, and the surprise emergence of a Russian competitor late yesterday, marked new twists in the long-running saga to replace the aging Boeing fleet.

Just last week EADS, the parent of Airbus, was forced to withdraw from the bidding after its lead partner, US defense contractor Northrop Grumman, refused to compete, alleging the requirements were skewed in favor of Boeing.

Northrop's exit from the competition left the field open to the Chicago-based Boeing, the aerospace giant that built the tanker fleet in the 1950s and has promised a formal bid by May 10.

Military commanders view the planned KC-X aircraft as crucial to sustaining US air power and are anxious to replace the older Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers.