Thompson: Tanker spat is taking a toll
Boeing Co. has pulled few punches in its protest of the Air Force’s February decision to give a hotly-contested contract for mid-air refueling tankers to Northrop Grumman and EADS.
But now Boeing’s aggressive approach may be damaging relations with its biggest military customer - the Air Force itself - says Loren Thompson, a respected defense analyst with The Lexington Institute.
In a piece posted today on the Institute’s website, Thompson compares the situation to both a divorcing couple and to Balkan politics, and argues that mutual irrational suspicions pose a long-term threat to both the company and the service.
Boeing has shown no signs of slowing its PR campaign on the tanker protest. As recently as Thursday, it issued a press release accusing the Air Force of “numerous irregularities” in the contracting process, and, in choosing the Northrop/EADS KC-30, essentially buying a plane that is more expensive and riskier than Boeing’s 767-based offering.
But few analysts give good odds to Boeing’s protest, which is now under review by the Government Accountability Office and will be ruled on by June. Keeping the heat so high, Thompson argues, could hurt Boeing more than it helps.
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FROM LOREN THOMPSON / LEXINGTON INSTITUTE: I would like to point out that my issue brief does not question the merit of Boeing’s tanker protest. The Air Force believes the protest is baseless, but I share Boeing’s view that some facets of the tanker selection process are hard to fathom. My main focus in today’s brief is on the stridency of statements from both sides, and how such comments are eroding a relationship between Boeing and the Air Force that has endured for three generations.