Did a Scandal Cost Boeing the $40B Bid?
A 4-year-old scandal may have scuttled Boeing's bid for an Air Force contract.
March 3, 2008— -- ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Experts say Boeing's loss of a $40 billion Air Force tanker contract last week highlights its changing relationship with the U.S. Air Force.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports the stunning loss resulted in part from fallout of a procurement scandal four years ago that scuttled the Chicago-based company's last tanker deal.
It lost a contract to lease 100 tankers to the Air Force after an investigation led to charges of illegal dealings between a top executive and an Air Force weapons buyer.
It was a black eye for Boeing and led to a $615 million settlement. It also changed the dynamic between Boeing and the world's biggest buyer of military planes.
Air Force officials wouldn't specify Friday why they chose the Northrop Grumman/EADS KC-30 for the tanker contract. But they indicated it was superior in several key areas.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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