The bidding contest between Airbus and Boeing for a US Air Force aerial refueling tanker contract heated up on Friday, with Airbus parent EADS mulling a new proposal and Russian state firm UAC gearing up for one next week.
EADS opened the door to a bid against US arch-rival Boeing for the US$35 billion contract after an indication from the Pentagon that the May deadline could be extended.
Renewed EADS interest in the competition, and the surprise emergence of a Russian competitor, marked new twists in the long-running saga to replace the fleet.
Just last week EADS 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 for Chicago-based Boeing, which 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.
The turning point for EADS appeared late on Thursday, when the Defense Department acknowledged it would consider “a reasonable extension” to the bidding deadline after learning from EADS that it may reenter the fray.
“Yesterday the US Department of Defense indicated it would welcome a proposal from EADS North America as prime contractor for the KC-X tanker competition,” EADS said in a statement on Friday.
“This is a significant development. EADS is assessing this new situation to determine if the company can feasibly submit a responsive proposal to the department’s request for a proposal,” the company said.
Archeologists in Peru on Thursday said they found the 5,000-year-old remains of a noblewoman at the sacred city of Caral, revealing the important role played by women in the oldest center of civilization in the Americas. “What has been discovered corresponds to a woman who apparently had elevated status, an elite woman,” archeologist David Palomino said. The mummy was found in Aspero, a sacred site within the city of Caral that was a garbage dump for more than 30 years until becoming an archeological site in the 1990s. Palomino said the carefully preserved remains, dating to 3,000BC, contained skin, part of the
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North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has unveiled a new naval destroyer, claiming it as a significant advancement toward his goal of expanding the operational range and preemptive strike capabilities of his nuclear-armed military, state media said yesterday. North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said Kim attended the launching ceremony for the 5,000-tonne warship on Friday at the western port of Nampo. Kim framed the arms buildup as a response to perceived threats from the US and its allies in Asia, who have been expanding joint military exercises amid rising tensions over the North’s nuclear program. He added that the acquisition
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