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Donley: No major changes to tanker specs

Air Force Secretary Michael Donley on Monday said the Pentagon is unlikely to change the requirements for the competition to build the service’s next refueling tankers.

Donley told reporters that “the requirements part of the RFP (request for proposals) is very strong” and that he “wouldn't anticipate major changes to the RFP in that area," according to a Reuters report.

Lt. Col Jeffry Glenn, a spokesman for Donley, confirmed that the secretary made the comments.

Northrop Grumman president Wes Bush said in a Dec. 1 letter to a Pentagon official that the company and its partner, European Aeronautics Defence and Space Co., would drop out of the tanker competition if the RFP did not eliminate a “clear preference for a smaller aircraft with limited multirole capability.”

Northrop/EADS’ sole competitor for the contract, Boeing Co., has proposed a smaller variant of the tanker.

Glenn said that both companies have complained about the RFP and there is no favoritism at play.

“Our requirements are based on what the warfighter needs,” he said.

There are 373 requirements included in the RFP, Glenn said. If either Northrop or Boeing fails to meet even one of those, they are “not allowed to pass Go,” he said.

Donley’s comments echoed a statement from the Pentagon, dated the same day as Bush’s letter, that the tanker requirements would not be changed.

Northrop spokesman Randy Belote said the company’s position has not changed since Bush sent his letter.

“Northrop Grumman feels that it cannot bid to this current draft RFP as it’s structured,” Belote said.

The new tanker, known as the KC-X, is expected to replace the service’s aging fleet of KC-135s.