"noname" wrote in message
...
As of last week, Lockheed Martin and EADS, majority owner of Airbus,
were assembling a tanker proposal that would give Lockheed a 50% offset,
according to the Air Force official. "[Airbus] clearly will jump on this
as an opportunity to compete not only on subsequent buys, but also to
take another whack at the first 100 since Boeing and the Air Force are
arguing over whether there's supposed to be one contract or two.
[Airbus] will come back with a sweetened deal."


http://www.aviationnow.com/avnow/new...s/12013wna.xml

Completing those tankers at Palmdale would draw quite a bit of political
support; Boxer needs to save her job.