Latest news about Boeing tanker deal
Yeah me too, she effectively stole millions from the USAF as a sweetener for her new employers. I'd question whether Boeing hasn't got away rather lightly, too.
Oh, of course, I can hear the reason they "didn't know she'd done it". They "didn't ask her to do it."
Oh, of course, I can hear the reason they "didn't know she'd done it". They "didn't ask her to do it."
Join Date: Apr 2002
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Back to the Airbus PCN/LCN issues and fears that it will not be able to operate out of some airfields...Surely it will be no worse off in this field than the L-1011 currently operated??? It is slightly lighter at MAUW, with same landing gear config is it not?
As for a 500nm transit taking "at least two and a half hours": maybe with the gear down!!
As for a 500nm transit taking "at least two and a half hours": maybe with the gear down!!
An additional 500 nm transit to the towline also requires a 500 nm transit back. 1000nm in 2.5 hours is an average of 400KTAS (including take-off, climb to altitude, transit, descent to AARA, return climb to altitude, transit, descent to landing). So it seems about right.
As for KC-767A, it could only take off with its max fuel load from runways considerably longer than a 10 000 ft balanced field even in still air, at ISA and sea level. No problem for the A330 though.
As for KC-767A, it could only take off with its max fuel load from runways considerably longer than a 10 000 ft balanced field even in still air, at ISA and sea level. No problem for the A330 though.
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With regard to the PCN/LCN issue, is it not the case that many airports with a published PCN/LCN will accept aircraft with higher requiremnts on a one off/rare basis? As such should the published PCN/LCN not be seen more as a durability issue for the runway than an immediate safety issue (for figures say 50% diffferent).
With that in mind during non wartime operations, traveling a bit furthur for greater time on task is no great hardship.
During wartime operatons, use the runway and worry about damage/repaving afterwards.
Apologies if I've got the wrong end of the stick.
With that in mind during non wartime operations, traveling a bit furthur for greater time on task is no great hardship.
During wartime operatons, use the runway and worry about damage/repaving afterwards.
Apologies if I've got the wrong end of the stick.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
And yet more problems for Boeing:
Boeing Competitors Protest
Lockheed Martin Corp. and BAE Systems North America Inc. filed protests with the Air Force yesterday over a $4 billion contract to upgrade electronics on C-130 military transport planes awarded to Boeing Co. in 2001. The companies had 10 days to dispute the contract after former Air Force procurement officer Darleen A. Druyun acknowledged in court documents that an "objective selection authority may not have selected Boeing." Druyun admitted she favored Boeing after the company gave jobs to her daughter and son-in-law..........
The C-130 work is among hundreds of contracts Druyun helped award that are now being reviewed by the Pentagon inspector general. "We will take appropriate action based upon the IG investigation and an evaluation of the protest," Air Force spokesman Doug Karas said.
Contract protests are typically considered long shots, but the unusual circumstances surrounding Druyun's admissions have made it more likely the Air Force will take some action, industry analysts said. Both companies will likely try to recoup the millions they spent bidding for the work, and the Air Force also could consider reallocating some of the contract or holding a new competition, they said. "Ms. Druyun's admitted bias and quid-pro-quo actions as the source selection authority clearly corrupted the acquisition process, which we had assumed at the time was being managed with fairness and integrity," BAE said in a statement. Lockheed's loss of the 10-year C-130 contract was considered stunning within the defense industry, particularly since Lockheed had built the planes for decades.
"It is important for us to restore our corporate reputation after the contract loss . . . and it's important to find a remedy for an injustice that Darleen Druyun caused through her unlawful actions," Lockheed spokesman Tom Jurkowsky said......
Druyun was also involved in a 1990s competition for rocket launchers in which Boeing was awarded a majority of the work over Lockheed. That contract is now the subject of a federal investigation since Boeing acknowledged that several of its employees had proprietary Lockheed documents during the competition. Lockheed is also suing Boeing over that work.
Boeing Competitors Protest
Lockheed Martin Corp. and BAE Systems North America Inc. filed protests with the Air Force yesterday over a $4 billion contract to upgrade electronics on C-130 military transport planes awarded to Boeing Co. in 2001. The companies had 10 days to dispute the contract after former Air Force procurement officer Darleen A. Druyun acknowledged in court documents that an "objective selection authority may not have selected Boeing." Druyun admitted she favored Boeing after the company gave jobs to her daughter and son-in-law..........
The C-130 work is among hundreds of contracts Druyun helped award that are now being reviewed by the Pentagon inspector general. "We will take appropriate action based upon the IG investigation and an evaluation of the protest," Air Force spokesman Doug Karas said.
Contract protests are typically considered long shots, but the unusual circumstances surrounding Druyun's admissions have made it more likely the Air Force will take some action, industry analysts said. Both companies will likely try to recoup the millions they spent bidding for the work, and the Air Force also could consider reallocating some of the contract or holding a new competition, they said. "Ms. Druyun's admitted bias and quid-pro-quo actions as the source selection authority clearly corrupted the acquisition process, which we had assumed at the time was being managed with fairness and integrity," BAE said in a statement. Lockheed's loss of the 10-year C-130 contract was considered stunning within the defense industry, particularly since Lockheed had built the planes for decades.
"It is important for us to restore our corporate reputation after the contract loss . . . and it's important to find a remedy for an injustice that Darleen Druyun caused through her unlawful actions," Lockheed spokesman Tom Jurkowsky said......
Druyun was also involved in a 1990s competition for rocket launchers in which Boeing was awarded a majority of the work over Lockheed. That contract is now the subject of a federal investigation since Boeing acknowledged that several of its employees had proprietary Lockheed documents during the competition. Lockheed is also suing Boeing over that work.
And MORE bad news.....
20 November
The Washington Post
Air Force Pitch for Boeing Detailed
E-Mails Show Pressure by Roche
By R. Jeffrey Smith
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, November 20, 2004; Page A01
Air Force Secretary James G. Roche asked a lobbyist for Boeing Co. to use the company's Washington contacts to "quash" a deputy undersecretary of defense and make him "pay an appropriate price" for objecting to the Air Force's decision to lease Boeing 767 tanker aircraft, according to e-mails released yesterday by a Republican senator critical of the tanker deal.
Roche also pressured independent military cost analysts who questioned the high price of the lease, described other internal Pentagon critics as "animals," and ridiculed executives at European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co. (EADS) and its Airbus division, the consortium that offered a competing plan, the e-mails show. He told his top public relations aide to "blow away" the EADS chairman for raising questions about the Air Force decision to work with Boeing.
Sen. John McCain said he will keep pursuing internal communications on the Boeing tanker lease deal.
At one point in the three-year Air Force campaign for the lease, Roche e-mailed a friend at Raytheon Co., "Privately between us: Go Boeing!"
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who has conducted an equally vigorous campaign against the lease, said in releasing the internal Pentagon communications in a speech on the Senate floor that the missives reflect a "systemic Air Force failure in procurement oversight, willful blindness or rank corruption."
McCain said top Air Force officials have recently been trying to "delude the American people" into believing that a single person is responsible for misconduct in the $30 billion leasing plan -- namely, Darleen A. Druyun, the Air Force contracting official who pleaded guilty two months ago to overpricing the tankers as a "parting gift" to Boeing before she became one of the firm's executives.
"I simply cannot believe that one person, acting alone, can rip off taxpayers out of billions of dollars," said McCain, who said he will keep pursuing internal Defense Department and Bush administration communications until "all the stewards of taxpayers' funds who committed wrongdoing are held accountable."
Roche and Marvin R. Sambur, the Air Force's top acquisitions manager, announced their resignations several days before McCain's speech. But both men said through Pentagon spokesmen that they had not been pushed out, and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld issued a statement hailing Roche for serving "our country capably and with honor."
The e-mails McCain released add detail to previous disclosures about the scope and intensity of the Air Force's lobbying effort, mostly working with Boeing, to defend against early complaints from the Office of Management and Budget and various Pentagon analysts that the lease was a costly Boeing bailout. The critics have contended that buying the refueling planes outright would save billions of dollars and that no urgent need exists to replace Air Force tankers.
For Boeing, securing the lease was a way to keep its 767s in production during a period of declining orders from passenger airlines. It mounted an aggressive lobbying effort that drew support from influential members of the House and Senate, many of whom had received substantial Boeing campaign contributions, and eventually gained the backing of White House Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card Jr.
The deal was blocked by Congress this year, after Druyun pleaded guilty to ethics violations and two senior Boeing officials resigned. One, Michael Sears, has since pleaded guilty to violating an ethics law governing employment negotiations with defense officials such as Druyun.
Yesterday, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John W. Warner (R-Va.) and senior committee Democrat Carl M. Levin (Mich.) joined McCain in a letter to Rumsfeld that called the tanker lease "the most significant" abuse since the "Ill Wind" bribery and fraud cases of the 1990s. They jointly demanded a review of the roles played by all Pentagon officials, both military and civilian, who "participated in structuring and negotiating the proposed tanker lease contract."
Warner said in a personal statement after hearing McCain's speech that he thinks the information shows that the departures of Roche and Sambur were in the "best interests" of the Defense Department. Air Force spokesman Douglas Karas declined to provide detailed comment on the e-mails but said they reflect "negotiations on an acquisition program that is now behind us" and will be reviewed by the defense secretary before talks are restarted.
"Ms. Druyun is solely responsible for her misconduct," Karas said, "and the fact that she was caught, convicted and sentenced reflects that the checks and balances in the system work. . . . All airmen deplore her misconduct as an assault on our core value of integrity."
According to the e-mails, Roche and Sambur organized a three-track effort to promote the deal: They sought to beat back a competing tanker offer from Airbus, to silence internal administration dissent, and to promote glowing assessments of the tanker program in public forums and military circles, frequently with Boeing's help.
Druyun expressed fury in a Sept. 5, 2002, e-mail to Roche about published remarks by an Airbus official about the lease plan, for example. Calling his remarks "BS" and "slime," she added: "His day of reckoning will come hopefully." Roche's response was "Oy. I agree." He also said he wished Druyun could have "tortured him slowly" over a period of years.
Roche has denied in congressional testimony that he ever asked Boeing to put pressure on Michael W. Wynne, principal deputy undersecretary for acquisition, who complained in 2003 that the tanker aircraft were too costly. McCain reported yesterday that on May 7 of that year, a Boeing lobbyist reported in an e-mail to Roche that Sambur was feeling pressured by Wynne to cut the cost; the lobbyist, Paul Weaver, asked if Boeing "needs to do anything like calling in the big guns to help out."
Roche responded that "it's time for the big guns to quash Wynne! Boeing won't accept such a dumb contract form and price, and Wynne needs to 'pay' an appropriate price."
Six weeks later, Roche complained directly to Wynne, who by then was an acting undersecretary of defense and more supportive of the program, that officials in the Pentagon's Office of Program Analysis and Evaluation (PA&E) who said the lease did not meet key regulatory criteria were "about to cause us to embarrass SecDef [Rumsfeld], who having approved the lease, will now have to explain why his staff is destroying the case for it."
Roche rendered his own view on the critics: "This is their way of asserting dominance over you. I know this sounds wild, but animals are animals."
Wynne's answer was that "I see this as an OSD discipline problem myself," and shortly afterward, he wrote an e-mail to a PA&E official complaining: "I have plenty of problems, but being 'fragged' didn't seem to be one of them. Now I worry."
And MORE.....
(From Defense Daily).
McCain Calls For Widened Investigation Into Air Force Conduct
By Sharon Weinberger
As part of the growing controversy over the Air Force\'s now defunct plans to
lease aerial refueling tankers, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) called for the
investigation into the deal to widen and released a slew of new internal
e-mails detailing the extent to which senior service officials sought to
eliminate competition in granting the multibillion dollar contract to
Boeing.
Quoting from a number of e-mails entered Friday into the Congressional
Record, McCain argued that Air Force leaders, and specifically Air Force
Secretary James Roche, improperly influenced other acquisition officials and
considered using allegations of impropriety as a way to stave off
competition. In 2002, Boeing was selected over the European Aeronautic
Defence and Space Co. (EADS) to provide 100 commercially derived aerial
refueling tankers to the Air Force, a deal potentially worth over $20
billion. In selecting Boeing, the Air Force cited, among other issues, EADS\'
lack of experience with integrating a boom on its Airbus aircraft.
Severe Criticism of Crosby, EADS
Roche at that time made repeated statements to Congress and the media that he supported having a fair and open competition for the tankers. But according to e-mails between Roche, and his then assistant, Bill Bodie, the Air Force secretary expressed personal animosity toward EADS and its CEO of North American operations. Bodie wrote Roche in September to complain about EADS tanker proposal, "We don\'t have to turn the other cheek, you know. I\'m ready to tell the truth about Airbus\'s boom, footprint, and financial shortcomings. But maybe we should sleep on it," Bodie wrote. Roche then replied, "No, Sir, save it and blow him away. He admits that they were not technically qualified! And, we keep their record of bribes as our trump card!"
The e-mail does not say what bribes Roche was referring to, but Airbus,
which is owned by EADS, has been accused in the past of using bribes to sell
its commercial aircraft.
McCain also quoted from e-mails detailing personal attacks against Ralph
Crosby, the head of EADS, North America. "Right. Privately between us: Go
Boeing! The fools in Paris and Berlin never did their homework," Roche wrote
to a defense industry official following news of Crosby\'s new position.
"And, Ralphie is the CEO and Chairman of a marketing firm, for that\'s all
there is to EADS, North America. The [Air Force] has problems with EADS on a
number of levels. The widespread feelings about Crosby in the Air Staff,
Jumper especially, will only make their life more difficult. Smiles."
Roche and Crosby were at one time competitors for a senior position at
Northrop Grumman [NOC].
The Air Force, in a statement, did not address specific e-mails, but
responded with a general statement. "Dr Roche\'s efforts were focused solely
on recapitalizing our Eisenhower-era tankers to deliver a much needed
capability to our warfighters," an Air Force spokesman said. "This
capability is crucial to our nation\'s ability to remain a global power. The
e-mails referenced by Senator McCain reflect negotiations on an acquisition
program that is now behind us." Roche submitted his resignation last week,
although he is expected to serve until Jan. 20.
EADS also declined to speak about the specific remarks made by Roche. "We
rely upon the integrity of the DoD procurement process to make fair
acquisition decisions," an EADS spokesperson said in a statement. "We
strongly support fair and open competition and believe there is no
appropriate place for personal bias."
The Air Force\'s original plans to lease and buy 100 KC-767 tankers was
eventually rejected after spiraling allegations that originated from an
investigation into Boeing\'s hiring of Darleen Druyun, a former Air Force
official. Druyun last month was sentenced to nine months in jail after
pleading guilty to discussing employment with Boeing while still negotiating
contracts with the company on behalf of the Air Force.
She also admitted to steering a number of contracts to Boeing as a reward
for her and her family\'s employment at the company. McCain said Congress
would hold a number of hearings on the Pentagon\'s acquisition policy when
lawmakers return in January.
McCain Takes Aim At Third Party Support Another issue McCain highlighted in
his Senate speech was the extent to which the Air Force sought to line up
outside support for its deal. Quoting from an e-mail between senior Air
Force officials, McCain took aim at Vago Muradian, the editor of Defense
News, a Gannett owned publication, and Loren Thompson, the chief operating
officer for the Lexington Institute.
McCain said the e-mails highlight the extent to which "Air Force leadership
focused on using the press," and quoting from Bodie\'s e-mail, called it "3rd
Party support at its best." Bodie wrote to Roche in 2002: "And, I talked to
[defense analyst] Loren [Thompson], who is standing by to comment to this
reporter about the national security imperatives of tanker modernization.
[Editor of Defense News ] Vago [Muradian] is also standing by."
Thompson, who had supported the tanker lease, said he saw nothing wrong with
his position. "I don\'t understand what\'s wrong with third party support?" he
said. "I\'m supporting their position as a third party."
Boeing has provided support to Lexington, according to Thompson, but the
money makes up less than 5 percent of the total support for the Arlington,
Va.-based think tank.
Thompson said his primary focus was on tanker modernization---not the lease
per se--and that neither the Air Force nor Boeing had control, wrote, or
fact checked what he wrote about the lease. The editor-in-chief of Defense
News, Tobias Naegele, insisted his publication has maintained independent
coverage, but said in some cases, articles have been run by government
officials. Asked if Defense News has shown pre-publication or draft versions
of articles to Air Force officials, he said, yes, and "in some cases" it
would be "reasonable" to run draft articles "past officials who provide
sensitive or technical information." Asked specifically if this had happened
with coverage of tankers, Naegele said it was "certainly possible."
Defense News has previously been embroiled in controversy after it published
an opinion piece submitted by a former Navy official that was, as was later
discovered from Boeing e-mails, ghostwritten by the company. Defense News
later said it was not aware Boeing wrote the piece.
Naegele said he stands by Muradian\'s editorial conduct at Defense News,
describing him as a "conscientious, talented, and skilled" editor. Muradian,
a former deputy editor of Defense Daily and editor of Defense Daily
International, left Defense Daily for Defense News in May 2002.
"We stand by whatever we published and printed," Naegele said.
20 November
The Washington Post
Air Force Pitch for Boeing Detailed
E-Mails Show Pressure by Roche
By R. Jeffrey Smith
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, November 20, 2004; Page A01
Air Force Secretary James G. Roche asked a lobbyist for Boeing Co. to use the company's Washington contacts to "quash" a deputy undersecretary of defense and make him "pay an appropriate price" for objecting to the Air Force's decision to lease Boeing 767 tanker aircraft, according to e-mails released yesterday by a Republican senator critical of the tanker deal.
Roche also pressured independent military cost analysts who questioned the high price of the lease, described other internal Pentagon critics as "animals," and ridiculed executives at European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co. (EADS) and its Airbus division, the consortium that offered a competing plan, the e-mails show. He told his top public relations aide to "blow away" the EADS chairman for raising questions about the Air Force decision to work with Boeing.
Sen. John McCain said he will keep pursuing internal communications on the Boeing tanker lease deal.
At one point in the three-year Air Force campaign for the lease, Roche e-mailed a friend at Raytheon Co., "Privately between us: Go Boeing!"
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who has conducted an equally vigorous campaign against the lease, said in releasing the internal Pentagon communications in a speech on the Senate floor that the missives reflect a "systemic Air Force failure in procurement oversight, willful blindness or rank corruption."
McCain said top Air Force officials have recently been trying to "delude the American people" into believing that a single person is responsible for misconduct in the $30 billion leasing plan -- namely, Darleen A. Druyun, the Air Force contracting official who pleaded guilty two months ago to overpricing the tankers as a "parting gift" to Boeing before she became one of the firm's executives.
"I simply cannot believe that one person, acting alone, can rip off taxpayers out of billions of dollars," said McCain, who said he will keep pursuing internal Defense Department and Bush administration communications until "all the stewards of taxpayers' funds who committed wrongdoing are held accountable."
Roche and Marvin R. Sambur, the Air Force's top acquisitions manager, announced their resignations several days before McCain's speech. But both men said through Pentagon spokesmen that they had not been pushed out, and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld issued a statement hailing Roche for serving "our country capably and with honor."
The e-mails McCain released add detail to previous disclosures about the scope and intensity of the Air Force's lobbying effort, mostly working with Boeing, to defend against early complaints from the Office of Management and Budget and various Pentagon analysts that the lease was a costly Boeing bailout. The critics have contended that buying the refueling planes outright would save billions of dollars and that no urgent need exists to replace Air Force tankers.
For Boeing, securing the lease was a way to keep its 767s in production during a period of declining orders from passenger airlines. It mounted an aggressive lobbying effort that drew support from influential members of the House and Senate, many of whom had received substantial Boeing campaign contributions, and eventually gained the backing of White House Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card Jr.
The deal was blocked by Congress this year, after Druyun pleaded guilty to ethics violations and two senior Boeing officials resigned. One, Michael Sears, has since pleaded guilty to violating an ethics law governing employment negotiations with defense officials such as Druyun.
Yesterday, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John W. Warner (R-Va.) and senior committee Democrat Carl M. Levin (Mich.) joined McCain in a letter to Rumsfeld that called the tanker lease "the most significant" abuse since the "Ill Wind" bribery and fraud cases of the 1990s. They jointly demanded a review of the roles played by all Pentagon officials, both military and civilian, who "participated in structuring and negotiating the proposed tanker lease contract."
Warner said in a personal statement after hearing McCain's speech that he thinks the information shows that the departures of Roche and Sambur were in the "best interests" of the Defense Department. Air Force spokesman Douglas Karas declined to provide detailed comment on the e-mails but said they reflect "negotiations on an acquisition program that is now behind us" and will be reviewed by the defense secretary before talks are restarted.
"Ms. Druyun is solely responsible for her misconduct," Karas said, "and the fact that she was caught, convicted and sentenced reflects that the checks and balances in the system work. . . . All airmen deplore her misconduct as an assault on our core value of integrity."
According to the e-mails, Roche and Sambur organized a three-track effort to promote the deal: They sought to beat back a competing tanker offer from Airbus, to silence internal administration dissent, and to promote glowing assessments of the tanker program in public forums and military circles, frequently with Boeing's help.
Druyun expressed fury in a Sept. 5, 2002, e-mail to Roche about published remarks by an Airbus official about the lease plan, for example. Calling his remarks "BS" and "slime," she added: "His day of reckoning will come hopefully." Roche's response was "Oy. I agree." He also said he wished Druyun could have "tortured him slowly" over a period of years.
Roche has denied in congressional testimony that he ever asked Boeing to put pressure on Michael W. Wynne, principal deputy undersecretary for acquisition, who complained in 2003 that the tanker aircraft were too costly. McCain reported yesterday that on May 7 of that year, a Boeing lobbyist reported in an e-mail to Roche that Sambur was feeling pressured by Wynne to cut the cost; the lobbyist, Paul Weaver, asked if Boeing "needs to do anything like calling in the big guns to help out."
Roche responded that "it's time for the big guns to quash Wynne! Boeing won't accept such a dumb contract form and price, and Wynne needs to 'pay' an appropriate price."
Six weeks later, Roche complained directly to Wynne, who by then was an acting undersecretary of defense and more supportive of the program, that officials in the Pentagon's Office of Program Analysis and Evaluation (PA&E) who said the lease did not meet key regulatory criteria were "about to cause us to embarrass SecDef [Rumsfeld], who having approved the lease, will now have to explain why his staff is destroying the case for it."
Roche rendered his own view on the critics: "This is their way of asserting dominance over you. I know this sounds wild, but animals are animals."
Wynne's answer was that "I see this as an OSD discipline problem myself," and shortly afterward, he wrote an e-mail to a PA&E official complaining: "I have plenty of problems, but being 'fragged' didn't seem to be one of them. Now I worry."
And MORE.....
(From Defense Daily).
McCain Calls For Widened Investigation Into Air Force Conduct
By Sharon Weinberger
As part of the growing controversy over the Air Force\'s now defunct plans to
lease aerial refueling tankers, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) called for the
investigation into the deal to widen and released a slew of new internal
e-mails detailing the extent to which senior service officials sought to
eliminate competition in granting the multibillion dollar contract to
Boeing.
Quoting from a number of e-mails entered Friday into the Congressional
Record, McCain argued that Air Force leaders, and specifically Air Force
Secretary James Roche, improperly influenced other acquisition officials and
considered using allegations of impropriety as a way to stave off
competition. In 2002, Boeing was selected over the European Aeronautic
Defence and Space Co. (EADS) to provide 100 commercially derived aerial
refueling tankers to the Air Force, a deal potentially worth over $20
billion. In selecting Boeing, the Air Force cited, among other issues, EADS\'
lack of experience with integrating a boom on its Airbus aircraft.
Severe Criticism of Crosby, EADS
Roche at that time made repeated statements to Congress and the media that he supported having a fair and open competition for the tankers. But according to e-mails between Roche, and his then assistant, Bill Bodie, the Air Force secretary expressed personal animosity toward EADS and its CEO of North American operations. Bodie wrote Roche in September to complain about EADS tanker proposal, "We don\'t have to turn the other cheek, you know. I\'m ready to tell the truth about Airbus\'s boom, footprint, and financial shortcomings. But maybe we should sleep on it," Bodie wrote. Roche then replied, "No, Sir, save it and blow him away. He admits that they were not technically qualified! And, we keep their record of bribes as our trump card!"
The e-mail does not say what bribes Roche was referring to, but Airbus,
which is owned by EADS, has been accused in the past of using bribes to sell
its commercial aircraft.
McCain also quoted from e-mails detailing personal attacks against Ralph
Crosby, the head of EADS, North America. "Right. Privately between us: Go
Boeing! The fools in Paris and Berlin never did their homework," Roche wrote
to a defense industry official following news of Crosby\'s new position.
"And, Ralphie is the CEO and Chairman of a marketing firm, for that\'s all
there is to EADS, North America. The [Air Force] has problems with EADS on a
number of levels. The widespread feelings about Crosby in the Air Staff,
Jumper especially, will only make their life more difficult. Smiles."
Roche and Crosby were at one time competitors for a senior position at
Northrop Grumman [NOC].
The Air Force, in a statement, did not address specific e-mails, but
responded with a general statement. "Dr Roche\'s efforts were focused solely
on recapitalizing our Eisenhower-era tankers to deliver a much needed
capability to our warfighters," an Air Force spokesman said. "This
capability is crucial to our nation\'s ability to remain a global power. The
e-mails referenced by Senator McCain reflect negotiations on an acquisition
program that is now behind us." Roche submitted his resignation last week,
although he is expected to serve until Jan. 20.
EADS also declined to speak about the specific remarks made by Roche. "We
rely upon the integrity of the DoD procurement process to make fair
acquisition decisions," an EADS spokesperson said in a statement. "We
strongly support fair and open competition and believe there is no
appropriate place for personal bias."
The Air Force\'s original plans to lease and buy 100 KC-767 tankers was
eventually rejected after spiraling allegations that originated from an
investigation into Boeing\'s hiring of Darleen Druyun, a former Air Force
official. Druyun last month was sentenced to nine months in jail after
pleading guilty to discussing employment with Boeing while still negotiating
contracts with the company on behalf of the Air Force.
She also admitted to steering a number of contracts to Boeing as a reward
for her and her family\'s employment at the company. McCain said Congress
would hold a number of hearings on the Pentagon\'s acquisition policy when
lawmakers return in January.
McCain Takes Aim At Third Party Support Another issue McCain highlighted in
his Senate speech was the extent to which the Air Force sought to line up
outside support for its deal. Quoting from an e-mail between senior Air
Force officials, McCain took aim at Vago Muradian, the editor of Defense
News, a Gannett owned publication, and Loren Thompson, the chief operating
officer for the Lexington Institute.
McCain said the e-mails highlight the extent to which "Air Force leadership
focused on using the press," and quoting from Bodie\'s e-mail, called it "3rd
Party support at its best." Bodie wrote to Roche in 2002: "And, I talked to
[defense analyst] Loren [Thompson], who is standing by to comment to this
reporter about the national security imperatives of tanker modernization.
[Editor of Defense News ] Vago [Muradian] is also standing by."
Thompson, who had supported the tanker lease, said he saw nothing wrong with
his position. "I don\'t understand what\'s wrong with third party support?" he
said. "I\'m supporting their position as a third party."
Boeing has provided support to Lexington, according to Thompson, but the
money makes up less than 5 percent of the total support for the Arlington,
Va.-based think tank.
Thompson said his primary focus was on tanker modernization---not the lease
per se--and that neither the Air Force nor Boeing had control, wrote, or
fact checked what he wrote about the lease. The editor-in-chief of Defense
News, Tobias Naegele, insisted his publication has maintained independent
coverage, but said in some cases, articles have been run by government
officials. Asked if Defense News has shown pre-publication or draft versions
of articles to Air Force officials, he said, yes, and "in some cases" it
would be "reasonable" to run draft articles "past officials who provide
sensitive or technical information." Asked specifically if this had happened
with coverage of tankers, Naegele said it was "certainly possible."
Defense News has previously been embroiled in controversy after it published
an opinion piece submitted by a former Navy official that was, as was later
discovered from Boeing e-mails, ghostwritten by the company. Defense News
later said it was not aware Boeing wrote the piece.
Naegele said he stands by Muradian\'s editorial conduct at Defense News,
describing him as a "conscientious, talented, and skilled" editor. Muradian,
a former deputy editor of Defense Daily and editor of Defense Daily
International, left Defense Daily for Defense News in May 2002.
"We stand by whatever we published and printed," Naegele said.
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good grief...
Hope McCain brings him back to explain the discrepancies in his Congressional testimony - and why he should not face the penalty associated with perjury.
Hope McCain brings him back to explain the discrepancies in his Congressional testimony - and why he should not face the penalty associated with perjury.
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Am I right in thinking that if this tanker deal all falls apart, then Brize doesent get its forecast increase in capacity that heralded the decision to close Lyneham?
Thus leaving nowhere for the Lyneham aircraft to go to and Lyneham's future secure?
Thus leaving nowhere for the Lyneham aircraft to go to and Lyneham's future secure?
LunchMonitor - I doubt it, now that A400M is due to be stationed at Brize as well as the C-17s plus whatever is left of the antique AT/AAR fleet in a few years' time...
Meanwhile, the Aussies have already signed the contract for their A330 MRTTs...... But the UK's civil serpents are still struggling to sort out the PFI for FSTA.
Meanwhile, the Aussies have already signed the contract for their A330 MRTTs...... But the UK's civil serpents are still struggling to sort out the PFI for FSTA.
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Lunch Monitor dont doubt it too much!
As BEagle says the "antique" Tankers,C-17's,A400's .....AND 25 C130J's should make things quite cosy.
I hear there is some fast talking going on in hallowed corridors with all sorts of crazy plans being considered.
Anyway back to this FSTA. Whats happening?? Its all gone quiet,when is the next big decision for the "suits".
As BEagle says the "antique" Tankers,C-17's,A400's .....AND 25 C130J's should make things quite cosy.
I hear there is some fast talking going on in hallowed corridors with all sorts of crazy plans being considered.
Anyway back to this FSTA. Whats happening?? Its all gone quiet,when is the next big decision for the "suits".
FSTA was nominated as a potential PFI project in 1997. Early work included a period of market building and Request for Information (RFI) and Invitation to Submit Outline Proposals (ISOP) phases. These activities provided confidence in the potential to secure a PFI solution.
Following Initial Gate approval in December 2000, the project launched a formal assessment phase designed to confirm whether PFI will offer best value for money.
An Invitation to Negotiate was issued in December 2000; two consortia submitted formal bids in July 2001.
Final bids were received from both consortia on 30 April 2003.
The Secretary of State for Defence announced in Jan 2004 that a bid from AirTanker Ltd had been judged to offer the best prospective value for money PFI solution to the FSTA requirement.
Single bidder negotiations were then taken forward with AirTanker Ltd; these were aimed at concluding a PFI contract 'as soon as possible'......
The PFI Service is expected to commence around the end of the decade.
MOD is seeking a service rather than a specified number of aircraft. The number of aircraft needed to meet service-based requirement may differ between aircraft solutions. The AirTanker consortium comprises EADS, Rolls Royce, Cobham and Thales. AirTanker is proposing the Airbus A330-200.
Culled from http://www.mod.uk/dpa/projects/fsta.htm
Following Initial Gate approval in December 2000, the project launched a formal assessment phase designed to confirm whether PFI will offer best value for money.
An Invitation to Negotiate was issued in December 2000; two consortia submitted formal bids in July 2001.
Final bids were received from both consortia on 30 April 2003.
The Secretary of State for Defence announced in Jan 2004 that a bid from AirTanker Ltd had been judged to offer the best prospective value for money PFI solution to the FSTA requirement.
Single bidder negotiations were then taken forward with AirTanker Ltd; these were aimed at concluding a PFI contract 'as soon as possible'......
The PFI Service is expected to commence around the end of the decade.
MOD is seeking a service rather than a specified number of aircraft. The number of aircraft needed to meet service-based requirement may differ between aircraft solutions. The AirTanker consortium comprises EADS, Rolls Royce, Cobham and Thales. AirTanker is proposing the Airbus A330-200.
Culled from http://www.mod.uk/dpa/projects/fsta.htm
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"As soon as possible"
Beags,thank you for your reply.
I meant to include in my previous post that we are absolutely potless,have no money,are skint.
The Bank Manager has asked us in for an interview to discuss the way forward.
I gather there will be some breaking news in the next couple of months. I hope the FSTA gets swept up in that.
At the mo it seems everyone is in limbo waiting for some decision or other.
I do hope someone can cheer up the Lyneham engineers.
Beags,thank you for your reply.
I meant to include in my previous post that we are absolutely potless,have no money,are skint.
The Bank Manager has asked us in for an interview to discuss the way forward.
I gather there will be some breaking news in the next couple of months. I hope the FSTA gets swept up in that.
At the mo it seems everyone is in limbo waiting for some decision or other.
I do hope someone can cheer up the Lyneham engineers.
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BEagle,
I think I know what you mean!
Porkyvalant,ambivilent,incandescent....oh you know what I mean.
I'm only a woodcutters daughter that had only the basic of education. Please dont send me to fight the baddies anymore.
Anyway about this Tanker...............
I think I know what you mean!
Porkyvalant,ambivilent,incandescent....oh you know what I mean.
I'm only a woodcutters daughter that had only the basic of education. Please dont send me to fight the baddies anymore.
Anyway about this Tanker...............
betty_boo_boo-bi-doo_x - 'porcovolant' means that there is a greater chance of pigs flying than whatever it is that's being described as porcovolant actually happening!