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I. Introduction 554 II. Overview of the State of the DoD Acquisition System 555 A. Underperformance of the DoD Acqusition System 555 B. Obstacles to Reforming the DoD Acquisition System [...]

Boeing's protest of the U.S. Air Force (USAF) source-selection decision regarding the sale of 179 tankers has led Northrop Grumman/EADS receiving a stop-work order. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has recommended the USAF to obtain revised proposals and re-evaluate these proposals and make new source selection decisions.

The Department of Defense (DOD) inspector general, Joseph E. Schmitz argued that the controversial lease provision that is Section 8159 of the Fiscal 2002 appropriations bill was at odds with other laws as military officials faced with conflicting instructions, ignored previous laws governing such a contract. The Air Force Secretary Michael L. dominguez stated that it would put funds in its Fiscal 2008 budget to begin a tanker recapitalization effort.

The bids for the supply of tanker and recovery vehicle are highlighted. Contract awarded to Stewart &Stevenson and various models of cargo vehicles manufactured are described.

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) is not planning any substantial changes to the KC-X refueling contest source-selection plans; thereby leading to more problems with bidders. The move has led to a further delay in issuing of the request for proposal (RfP), which USAF plans to stick to; however, is willing to consider other aspects.

Northrop Grumman and EADS plan to team up to offer the A330 as a candidate for U.S. Air Force aerial refuelers. However, according to industry officials an influential study being reviewed at the Pentagon could impact the Department of Defense's procurement plans and send potential bidders back to the drawing board and open the field to new additional competitors.

Establishment of a KC-135 replacement plan in the wake of the defunct KC-767 lease proposal is expected to take longer time and could engulf Boeing, EADS, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. Pentagon's slow pace in this case would enable entry for new US bidder that could provide the competition it wants without alienating the Congress who needs no part of an Airbus offering.

Byline: Andrew McLaughlin Australian defence minister Senator David Johnston has hinted that his government is considering acquiring additional Airbus Defence & Space KC-30/A330 multirole tanker transports (MRTTs) and Boeing C-17 [...]

The UK's Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft fleet modernisation programme has taken another step forward with the delivery of the third modified Airbus A330 to RAF Brize Norton on 19 December. [...]

If the Rev Craig Smith were more familiar with the US weapon acquisition process and with US tanker missions he might show a little more Christian charity in his judgement [...]

TANKER STEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC USAF braces for a backlash Boeing has won the $34 billion KC-X tanker contract, but arch rival EADS North America could yet appeal the decision [...]

tankers Antonov awaits response on KC-X bid Antonov and its domestic partner US Aerospace have yet to receive a response from the Department of Defense following their last-minute bid for [...]

tankers stephen trimble washington dc KC-X contest unfair: Northrop The USAF has not fundamentally altered requirements for its new tanker, but it has changed how it will be evaluated Two [...]

Boeing's ongoing problems in finalising a deal with the US Air Force for Boeing KC-767 in-flight refuelling aircraft has cost it A$2 billion ($1.5 billion) Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF)tanker [...]

The Israeli air force is upgrading its in-flight refuelling capability to enable its fleet of around eight Boeing 707-300 tankers to remain in service for at least another 20 years. [...]

US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld has ordered a new inquiry into the reasons behind the US Air Force's original decision in late 2001 to lease 100 Boeing KC-767 tankers. The [...]

The final piece of the UK's air transport and inflight refuelling puzzle has emerged at last, with the Ministry of Defence opting for the Airbus A330-200 as its Future Strategic [...]

Congress is to ask the US Department of Defence to study the lease of just 25 Boeing 767 tankers as the original 100-aircraft deal slides deeper into controversy. The last [...]

Activity on Boeing's KC-767A tanker/transport for the US Air Force is accelerating in anticipation of imminent US Congressional approval for the lease of up to 100 aircraft. The Congressional Budget [...]

The two bidders for the UK's Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft programme submitted final bids last week, and traded blows on the suitability of each other's proposal. BAE Systems, Boeing, Serco [...]

Boeing hopes to finally sign an agreement with the US Air Force by next month to lease 100 new-build 767 tankers. Based on a recently concluded handshake deal, the tankers [...]

The US Air Force's fleet of 546 Boeing KC-135E/R/T Stratotanker in-flight refuelling aircraft are aged and increasingly expensive to support. But in the absence of a massive injection of funding, [...]

If the private finance initiative goes ahead, the successful bidder for the UK's Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft deal will be able to offer spare aircraft for third-party work when the [...]

The article discusses the clerical administrative error in the KC-X tanker bidding contest of the U.S. Air Force (USAF) that led to the technical assessment of Boeing's bid ended up being delivered to rival EADS and vice-versa. The USAF is analyzing the inadvertently disclosed information to ensure that both competitors have had equal access to the same information.

Legislators in the U.K. have expressed concerns over problems with the Strategic Defense and Security Review (SDSR) claiming that it could end up leading to poor decision making. Some of the other concerns regarding the SDSR are highlighted.

The U.S. Air Force's (USAF's) KC-135 project, a part of the KC-X competition is once again in trouble due to a complaint from one of the bidders U.S. Aerospace/Antonov that their bid was not considered, leading to the company complaining to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The USAF has said that the bid was not considered because it was received after the deadline for the competition ended.

The decision on the U.S. Air Force (USAF) KC-X tanker refueling award is expected to be finalized by November, 2010, following the November 2nd U.S. congressional elections. One of the bidders EADS was given an extension by 60 days following the pull out of its partner Northrop Grumman from the bid while the other bidder is Boeing.

A company source has revealed that Boeing may decide not to bid at all for the U.S. Air Force (USAF) KC-X tanker refueling competition. The move would then leave EADS of Europe as the sole bidder for the contract.

EADS is now considering going ahead with a solo bid for the U.S. Air Force (USAF) KC-X tanker refueling competition after partner Northrop Grumman walked out following claims of partiality towards rival Boeing. EADS is quite optimistic about the bid following successful flight trials of the first two Multirole Tanker Transports (MRTT).

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) tanker contest now has new bidders entering the fray with United Aircraft Corp. (UAC), a Russian state-owned aerospace group with an unnamed American partner and EADS joining Boeing in the fray. Details of the efforts that all the three are planning to undertake in order to win the competition are highlighted.

The KC-X tanker refueling contract of the U.S. Army is being criticized by European industry and political leaders after Northrop Grumman decided not to bid for the contest as Boeing was being favored. French President, Nicolas Sarkozy also criticized the KC-X tanker contract, saying that the issue will be taken up with U.S. President Barack Obama.

The article discusses the impact of the decision by Northrop Grumman/EADS not to bid for the KC-X aerial refueling tanker contract for the U.S. Air Force (USAF) on the Pentagon as well as EADS. Pentagon is contemplating how to proceed further, while EADS is now working out a revised strategy for its U.S. growth targets.

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) has structured its request for proposals (RfP) for its KC-X tanker contest keeping in mind the doubts and worries of the competitors. However, Northrop Grumman/EADS is still undecided on whether it will go ahead or drop out of the competition, leaving the competition open for the remaining bidder Boeing.

The delivery of Boeing's 767 tanker aircraft to the Italian Air Force has once again been delayed due to a problem with the hose-and-drogue refueling system. The start date has been pushed back to the end of November 2009; however, this date has again been pushed back to January 2010.

The increasing use of fixed-price contracts by the U.S. administration and President Barack Obama have created worried among the bidders of the U.S. Army's KC-X tanker competition. Northrop Grumman in partnership with EADS and Boeing are the competitors for the contract, and need to avoid any sort of back-biting.

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) tanker refueling contest is once again in the news with EADS claiming that the release of pricing information to Boeing of EADS and partner Northrop Grumman in the last tanker bid has given Boeing an unfair advantage. EADS feels that they should be given the same advantage with Boeing's pricing information; however, Boeing has declined.

The Pentagon is quite optimistic about being able to design a new contract for the controversial KC-X tanker replacement contest in order to minimize misunderstanding that took place the last time. The only change in the KC-X is a dramatically reshaped list of system-level requirements that limit the scope of interpretation.

The Royal Australian Air Force is concerned over the continuing delays in equipment for the EADS KC-30 refueling tanker for which the country is the main buyer. The future of the Wedgetail airborne early warning aircraft being developed by Boeing is also uncertain.

Contracts for the combat search-and-rescue helicopter and the TSAT communications satellite are expected to be decided by the incoming president of the U.S. This follows problems with the 179-plane tanker contract for the U.S. Air Force which has also been delayed.

The second attempt at the possibility of winning the U.S. Air Force tanker contract could decide the fate of Boeing. But Boeing's future lies in the 787 Dreamliner passenger plane, which is running 15 months behind schedule.

A report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) revealed many shortcomings of the U.S. Air Force (USAF) in the award of the contract to Northrop Grumman. Boeing hopes to win he contract following the intervention of the GAO.