EADS, the parent of aircraft manufacturer Airbus, will make a solo bid for a contract to replace the US Air ForceÔÇÖs ageing fleet of refuelling tankers that could be worth up to $50 billion.
The European aerospace and defence conglomerate has been considering a solo bid since early March when its partner, Northrop Grumman, pulled out of the contest, arguing that the team had little chance of winning.
The contract is to supply an initial 179 tanker aircraft to the Air Force. With follow-on deals, the overall project could be worth more than $100 billion.
Paris-based EADS has now re-entered the race after the US government extended the bid deadline to 10 May.
Industry insiders have suggested that for EADS, the opportunity to achieve its ambition of building a presence in the USÔÇöthe largest defence market in the worldÔÇöhas proved simply too tempting.
The company said it would offer a modified version of its A330 commercial freighter, which would be built in Mobile, Alabama. The project would create tens of thousands of US jobs, it said.
Commenting on the announcement, EADS North America chairman Ralph D. Crosby Jr said: ÔÇ£We will offer a modern, more capable tanker in response to the Defense DepartmentÔÇÖs decision to encourage competition for this major taxpayer investment.
ÔÇ£Our KC-45 is the only real, flying, low-risk solution that today meets the demanding Air Force air refueling requirements and is actually in production now. That fact is critical because our warfighters deserve a true best value solution.ÔÇØ
Sean OÔÇÖKeefe, EADS North America chief executive officer added: ÔÇ£This tanker competition is all about the warfighter and the aircraft that most successfully meets their requirements. The KC-45 offers what the Air Force needs today: a modern military tanker that is in production now with deliveries beginning this year.ÔÇØ
However, although EADS has numerous key suppliers, it has not yet found a US partner to undertake some of the more sensitive work that the contract would require. Discussions with L-3 Communications, considered to have been its most likely choice of partner, are understood to have ground to a halt.
The company also has to familiarise itself with technical briefings and data that would previously have been channelled through Northrop Grumman.
There is also the challenge of actually winning the contract against Chicago-based Boeing. NorthropÔÇÖs executives argued that BoeingÔÇÖs smaller and less expensive 767-based aircraft was favoured under the current rules
EADS is the parent company of Toulouse, France-based Airbus, the European rival of Boeing.
