Tanker Truths

16 Apr 2008
Chief Boeing Backer in Congress Trying to Discredit Northrop Grumman's Win
The Hill, an influential Capitol Hill newspaper, is reporting that a chief Boeing backer in Congress is using a classified CIA briefing to try and discredit Northrop Grumman's win of an Air Force contract to build America's next generation of aerial refueling tankers.

Representative Todd Tiahrt of Kansas, acknowledges he's requested and received a CIA briefing on EADS, a key Northrop Grumman contractor. According to The Hill, the briefing "discusses past practices involving a number of different countries and foreign-based companies," including EADS.

Tiahrt told the newspaper the contents of the briefing–which he wouldn't disclose–should have disqualified EADS from participating in the contract.

In fact, the tanker contract was based entirely on the Air Force deciding that Northrop Grumman's bid was superior to Boeing's in four of five crucial evaluation criteria. The past practices of both bidders were not considered in the evaluation.

And as The Hill points out, Tiahrt's strategy could bring renewed focus on Boeing's own proven history of corruption.

The Hill reminds its readers that "references to the CIA briefing could backfire because Boeing itself has been tarnished during the Air Force's search for replacement tankers. Northrop won the contract only after the Air Force opened competition in the wake of the jailing of two Boeing officials convicted for striking a corrupt leasing deal for tankers."

"Darleen Druyun, a former Air Force acquisition official who left the government to work for Boeing, admitted in 2004 in court that she steered multibillion-dollar contracts to Boeing while she was seeking employment with the company for herself and members of her family," the newspaper wrote.

To read the entire article, go to:
http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/cia-tapped-for-tanker-contract-fight-
2008-04-15.html

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