KC-X maneuvering

From Flight International

DATE:26/08/08

SOURCE:Flight International

Northrop declines to rule out platform switch for new KC-X bid

By Stephen Trimble

As Boeing reportedly considers alternate platforms or withdrawal from the US Air Force's KC-X tanker competition, the Northrop Grumman/EADS North America team may also consider upgrading its tanker offer.

The US Department of Defense plans to release a final request for proposals during the last week of August, in defiance of Boeing's public requests for an extension period.

Boeing's chosen 767-200ERX platform is likely to be too small to compete against the KC-30B version of the A330-200 if fuel offload capacity remains a key evaluation criteria.

Northrop, meanwhile, now refuses to rule out the option of switching to a different platform when it submits its proposal in early October. "We'll consider all of the options that are available to us and we'll propose the platform that best meets the customer's requirements," it says.

The A330-200 was selected for the competition in 2006 because Airbus had not yet launched the A330-200 Freighter. Northrop instead proposed to deliver the A330 passenger model, convert it into a freighter and then further modify the aircraft as a tanker. Switching to the pure freighter model, which was launched last year, is likely to be more efficient.

Previously, Northrop tanker vice-president Paul Meyer told Flight International that his team would "inevitably" switch to the freighter if it won the original KC-X competition.

Northrop also plans to build new commercial freighters in Mobile, Alabama, if the KC-30B finally secures the tanker contract.

Israel is meanwhile to convert additional Boeing 707s into tankers to close the gap until the USAF fields a replacement for its oldest KC-135s. "The delayed [KC-X] selection process will result in the conversion of more 707s to the tanker role," confirms an Israeli source. The Israeli air force plans to use US foreign military financing to acquire the same tanker that will enter USAF service.

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and, hand in hand with that report ...

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From Flight International

DATE: 25/08/08

SOURCE: Flightglobal.com

EADS lets US market strategy slip in job ad

By Stephen Trimble

A new job advertisement inadvertently confirms EADS North America’s serious intention to use Airbus platforms to compete for a variety of Boeing 707- and 747-based platforms flown by the US Air Force.

The advertisement posted on the EADS-NA web site, dated 21 August, seeks candidates for a position titled “Business Development Director (tanker & derivative aircraft)”.

The fifth bullet point under a description of position responsibilities states: “Anticipate and provide analysis and marketing strategy for Airbus platforms which could compete for Air Force programmes, such as E-4B, JSTARS, AWACS and other C2ISR Platforms”.

The existence of such a role reveals new details about EADS-NA’s ambitions to grow beyond the KC-X tanker replacement contract in the US market.

Northrop Grumman and EADS are teamed for the second round of the KC-X competition. The USAF’s original decision to pick their KC-30B proposal over the Boeing KC-767 was over-ruled by the US Government Accountability Office, which cited several procedural mistakes in the USAF’s acquisition process.

The winner of the KC-X competition is in a strong position to compete for other 707-based aircraft in the USAF fleet, including the Boeing E-3 airborne warning and control system (AWACS) and the Northrop Grumman E-8C Joint Surveillance and Target Attack Radar System (JSTARS).

The USAF also operates the RC-135 Rivet Joint for electronic surveillance missions. The E-4B is the only 747-based platform on the list.

Last year, both EADS and Airbus also confirmed that the USAF had requested information about several aircraft types, including the A380, to replace the VC-25 Air Force One fleet.