Pentagon altering request for tanker proposals

The Air Force's preliminary request for proposals on a $35 billion program to replace its refueling tanker fleet is being reviewed and changed after comments from bidders and lawmakers, a Pentagon spokesman said.

"No final decisions have been made yet, but it is safe to say there will be changes to the draft," Geoff Morrell said Wednesday at a news conference. "The team is in the process of correcting mistakes and altering the acquisition strategy a bit."

Northrop Grumman and partner European Aeronautic Defence & Space (EADS), the parent of Boeing rival Airbus, said in a Dec. 1 letter to the Pentagon that they wouldn't compete against Boeing for the contract unless the draft request was amended, citing "financial burdens." Lawmakers supporting both sides have said the draft request favored the other side.

The final request for the tanker program will be issued "hopefully by the end of this month if not early next month," Morrell said. The changes shouldn't be viewed as an attempt to favor either side, he said.

Pentagon officials hope Northrop "will reconsider their decision about whether or not to bid for the replacement tanker because there's a lot of money to be made for whoever wins," Morrell said.

Randy Belote, a spokesman for Los Angeles-based Northrop, declined to comment.

"It's our understanding that no significant changes will be made" to the draft request before it reaches its final form, Boeing spokesman Bill Barksdale said in an e-mail. Boeing expects the Air Force to consider comments and questions to improve the document, he said.