Air Force KC-X Tanker Aircraft Program: Background and Issues for Congress
Abstract
On February 24, 2010, the Department of Defense (DOD) released its Request for Proposals for a program to build 179 new KC-X aerial refueling tankers for the Air Force, a contract valued at roughly $35 billion. On March 8, 2010, the team of Northrop Grumman and the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company announced that they would not bid for the contract, leaving Boeing as the only expected bidder. Boeing will offer a KC-X design based on its 767 airliner, to be built in Seattle, WA, and Wichita, KS. The KC-X acquisition program is a subject of intense interest because of the dollar value of the contract, the number of jobs it would create, the importance of tanker aircraft to U.S. military operations, and because DOD's attempts to acquire a new tanker over the past several years have ultimately failed. DOD's proposed new KC-X acquisition competition strategy poses several potential oversight issues for Congress, including the following: Has DOD adequately defined the required capabilities for the KC-X and established a fair and adequate framework for scoring and evaluating bids against those required capabilities? Should the Air Force be in charge of the new KC-X competition? If there is only one bidder, how will DOD determine an appropriate price for the tankers and control costs throughout the program?
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 12, 2010
- Accession Number
- ADA521247
Entities
People
- Jeremiah Gertler
Organizations
- Library of Congress