Filed under: Boeing Co (BA) , Northrop Grumman (NOC) Boeing Inc. (NYSE: BA ) has won a tactical victory in its $35 billion competition for the Air Force's airborne refueling tanker. Bloomberg News reports that Defense Secretary Gates notified Boeing and EADS/ Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC ) that their bids would be due after the November election. Boeing said it wanted the delay so it would have time to prepare a competitive bid. "Boeing threatened August 21 to pull out, saying that the 767-200 plane it offered more than a year ago is now too small to 'fit the bill' in clarified Air Force guidelines. The Northrop-EADS entry, based on the Airbus A330 commercial jetliner, can carry 250,000 pounds of fuel, more than Boeing's 205,000," according to Bloomberg. This is great news for Boeing -- but it depends on who gets elected. If McCain becomes president, EADS/Northrop will probably win since his former finance Chair is Tom Loeffler , an EADS lobbyist. But if Obama wins, the competition is likely to be decided on the merits. Regardless, for the time being Boeing has won an important tactical victory which it should savor. Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates . He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter . Portfolio will publish his book about Boeing, You Can't Order Change: Lessons From Jim McNerney's Turnaround at Boeing, in December 2008. He has no financial interest in the securities mentione ...
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Filed under: Boeing Co (BA) , Northrop Grumman (NOC) Boeing Inc. (NYSE: BA ) has won a tactical victory in its $35 billion competition for the Air Force's airborne refueling tanker. Bloomberg News reports that Defense Secretary Gates notified Boeing and EADS/ Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC ) that their bids would be due after the November election. Boeing said it wanted the delay so it would have time to prepare a competitive bid. "Boeing threatened August 21 to pull out, saying that the 767-200 plane it offered more than a year ago is now too small to 'fit the bill' in clarified Air Force guidelines. The Northrop-EADS entry, based on the Airbus A330 commercial jetliner, can carry 250,000 pounds of fuel, more than Boeing's 205,000," according to Bloomberg. This is great news for Boeing -- but it depends on who gets elected. If McCain becomes president, EADS/Northrop will probably win since his former finance Chair is Tom Loeffler , an EADS lobbyist. But if Obama wins, the competition is likely to be decided on the merits. Regardless, for the time being Boeing has won an important tactical victory which it should savor. Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates . He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter . Portfolio will publish his book about Boeing, You Can't Order Change: Lessons From Jim McNerney's Turnaround at Boeing, in December 2008. He has no financial interest in the securities mentione ...