Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Washington Times
April 24, 2008
Pg. 18
I commend Sen. Elizabeth Dole for her March 31 Op-Ed column, "Planning for America's Security," on the state of our nation's defense preparedness. I was particularly interested in her views about our aging jet fuel-tanker fleet, built during the Eisenhower administration. The delays in upgrading the fleet have been compounded by the way the bid for replacing it has been handled by the Pentagon.
Ultimately, the Air Force chose France's Airbus over America's Boeing, a decision that could prove to be disastrous. Boeing has a proven jet tanker, but Airbus has never built one used by any of the world's air commands. Boeing would have provided work for 44,000 American people and 300 domestic suppliers across 25 states. Airbus promised a not-yet-built U.S. manufacturing plant and perhaps 25,000 U.S. jobs. Furthermore, compared to the Airbus tanker, Boeing's offer was 24 percent more fuel-efficient and had a 22 percent lower operating cost. It would have saved more than $15 billion in fuel costs alone over the life cycle of the first 179 new tankers. Finally, in a combat situation, Boeing's tanker was assessed by the Air Force to be more likely of surviving destruction.
So, the Pentagon is not only moving at a glacial pace, but also outsourcing our national security and manufacturing base to France, of all places.
REP. DAVID R. LEWIS, North Carolina, House of Representatives, Dunn, N.C.
Editor's Note: The op-ed by Sen. Dole appeared in the Current News Early Bird, March 31, 2008.
April 24, 2008
Pg. 18
I commend Sen. Elizabeth Dole for her March 31 Op-Ed column, "Planning for America's Security," on the state of our nation's defense preparedness. I was particularly interested in her views about our aging jet fuel-tanker fleet, built during the Eisenhower administration. The delays in upgrading the fleet have been compounded by the way the bid for replacing it has been handled by the Pentagon.
Ultimately, the Air Force chose France's Airbus over America's Boeing, a decision that could prove to be disastrous. Boeing has a proven jet tanker, but Airbus has never built one used by any of the world's air commands. Boeing would have provided work for 44,000 American people and 300 domestic suppliers across 25 states. Airbus promised a not-yet-built U.S. manufacturing plant and perhaps 25,000 U.S. jobs. Furthermore, compared to the Airbus tanker, Boeing's offer was 24 percent more fuel-efficient and had a 22 percent lower operating cost. It would have saved more than $15 billion in fuel costs alone over the life cycle of the first 179 new tankers. Finally, in a combat situation, Boeing's tanker was assessed by the Air Force to be more likely of surviving destruction.
So, the Pentagon is not only moving at a glacial pace, but also outsourcing our national security and manufacturing base to France, of all places.
REP. DAVID R. LEWIS, North Carolina, House of Representatives, Dunn, N.C.
Editor's Note: The op-ed by Sen. Dole appeared in the Current News Early Bird, March 31, 2008.