The European aerospace concern EADS said Wednesday it was
disappointed at the decision by the US Defence Department to cancel a
35-billion-dollar competition to build the next generation of Air Force tanker
refuellers.
EADS had won the contract in partnership with US aviation concern
Northrop-Grumman only to see it put on ice after a congressional oversight
agency upheld a protest by rival bidder Boeing.
"We have a contract and we are striving for an appropriate fulfilment of this
contract, EADS chief Louis Gallois said.
"We believe that the KC-45 is the best tanker for the US military and we
stand behind our partner Northrop-Grumman," he said.
Saying that EADS had not been given any detailed information from the US Air
Force or Northrop-Grumman, Gallois said the contract for the planes was still
valid and should be fulfilled.
The EADS chairman said the Wednesday's announcement by the Pentagon would not
have any ramifications on the company's operating result because the contract
was not included in the planning, according to dpa.
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