From DefenseNews

 

Boeing Pitches 777 Tanker; Labels New USAF Bid 7A7

By karen walker

Published: 15 Jun 2009 19:05

 

PARIS - Boeing is preparing to offer either the 777 or the 767 airframes when it rebids the U.S. tanker contest, the company said June 15.

 

Speaking at the Paris Air Show, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) president and CEO Jim Albaugh said he expected to see a request for proposals (RFP) this summer for the new U.S. Air Force tanker competition.

 

"I expect it will not have nearly as many requirements as the last one," he said.

 

Boeing lost out on the last hotly competed tanker contest to a joint bid by Northrop Grumman and EADS that was based on the Airbus A330 airframe. But Boeing protested that contest, and the following Government Accountability Office report lambasted the Air Force for how it ran the contest. As a result, the order was cancelled and a new competition is being run between the rival manufacturers.

 

Albaugh said that Boeing would decide which aircraft to bid once it had seen the RFP. Meanwhile, it has renamed its tanker program the KC-7A7. Asked what the 'A' stood for, he was vague, but said that if the media wanted to pick a word, they could use "advanced."

From Flight Global

 

DATE: 16/06/09

SOURCE: Flight Daily News

 

PARIS AIR SHOW: Boeing considering GEnx for KC-X tanker

By Stephen Trimble

 

Boeing confirms the General Electric GEnx engine family is among the propulsion systems it will consider for a new KC-X tanker proposal based on either the 767- or 777-series airliners.

 

The surprise inclusion of GEnx, which powers the 787 and 747-8, among its engine choices signals a new level of flexibility for Boeing's approach to both propulsion suppliers and platforms to fulfil the US Air Force's still undecided requirements for a KC-135 tanker replacement.

 

If Boeing's previous tanker campaign was characterised by a single-minded advocacy for a 767-200LRF powered by a Pratt & Whitney PW4062, its third attempt to win the KC-X contract is being carefully shaped to preserve its flexibility to the USAF's requirements.

 

"It's not about us," says Chris Raymond, Boeing's vice-president for business development. "It's about what they decide to put in their requirements."

 

The dramatic change in tone comes after USAF officials briefed Boeing on what things the company should change about its approach to the competition, says Dave Bowman, Boeing's vice-president for tanker programmes. "And we listened to what they told us," he adds.

 

The USAF plans to release a draft request for proposals in July or August, which should provide their first glimpse of the requirements that will shape Boeing's response.

 

Bowman says Boeing's 7A7 tanker concept encompasses all of its aircraft models, but his comments singled out the 767 family and the 777-200ER, in particular.

 

Sharply departing from claims in the previous competition, Bowman says a KC-777 can be developed on a similar timeline and budget as a KC-767.

 

The 777 option should offer Boeing a size advantage over the smaller A330-200 being proposed by the Northrop Grumman/EADS North America team.

 

Bowman notes, however, that if the USAF prefers more flexibility, a 767 model could be the best fit.

 

"It's an interesting fact that bigger isn't always better," Bowman says.

 

Meanwhile, GE confirms that GEnx-1B and -2B are in the correct size class for the tanker competition, but adds that there has been no official agreement with a manufacturer.

Meanwhile ...

 

From Flight Global

 

DATE: 16/06/09

SOURCE: Flight Daily News

 

PARIS AIR SHOW: Northrop/EADS rules out A330-200F for KC-X

By Stephen Trimble

 

The Northrop Grumman/EADS North America team has eliminated the pure freighter version of the Airbus A330-200 airliner as a competitor for the US Air Force KC-X contract.

 

Northrop based its original proposal for the USAF's KC-135 replacement contract on the passenger to freighter conversion model of the A330-200.

 

Since forming the original bid, Airbus has launched the A330-200F, which is expected to fly by the end of this year.

 

Despite its potential availability, Northrop has ruled out the freighter model as too costly, too heavy and wrong for the USAF's requirement, says Paul Meyer, Northrop vice-president and general manager for advanced programmes.

 

According to Airbus, the pure A330-200F is at least 8-10t heavier than the baseline passenger model. That extra weight would require a corresponding decrease in fuel load, Meyer says.

 

Moreover, "the freighter didn't find itself being necessary," Meyer adds, because the USAF requirements shifted away from employing the tanker as a supplementary airlifter.

 

But "the biggest driver was the cost", Meyer says.

 

Northrop is awaiting the release of a draft request for proposals by the US Air Force for KC-X. It expects the document to be released in late August, followed by the final RFP release in late October or early November. A final contract award could be signed in March 2010, Meyer says.