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“WITH EVERY CONTRACT
WE SEND OVERSEAS, WE LOSE OUR CAPACITY TO BUILD FOR OUR OWN MILITARY”
 WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Pentagon announced on Friday that Boeing would not be awarded a $40 billion Air Force contract to
produce the next generation of tanker aircraft. Congresswoman Nancy Boyda (Kansas Second District) called the decision to have 179 tankers built by EADS, the European Aerospace conglomerate
and Northrop Grumman, “an outrage”.
Boyda said, “This is just wrong in so many ways. By sending the
tanker contract to France, the Pentagon has effectively jeopardized 44,000 American jobs. It’s a very real loss to the industrial base.”
EADS-Northrop will use American workers only for assembly. “And let’s not forget that Boeing has experience building tankers. Airbus has none. This is about more than keeping jobs
in Kansas. It’s about relying on a company with the proven ability to do the job.”
“In addition to the economic blow,” said Boyda, “it is an issue of national security. EADS is
subsidized by a number of European governments. How can we guarantee that supplies from EADS will continue to flow to the United States if those countries do not agree with America’s
foreign policy?”
This is the third military contract to negatively impact Kansas and
our nation’s ability to build for its own military in recent months. The Kansas Army Ammunition Plant in Parsons lost the production of 60mm and 81mm
mortars when the contract was awarded to Canada’s General Dynamics. Additionally, the Goodyear plant in Topeka, which produces tires for Humvees, was put at a distinct
disadvantage when the Defense Logistics Agency gave its responsibility to manage all military tire contracts to Michelin. Boyda fought aggressively to keep management of military tire
contracts with the DLA.
Said Boyda, “It just makes no sense for America to outsource our ability to defend a nation. In
World War II, our nation’s manufacturers turned on a dime to produce the planes and trucks we need to keep America safe. With every contract we send overseas, we lose our capacity to
build for our own military.”
“Please know,” added Boyda, “I will fight to help protect jobs in Kansas and our nation’s
security when it comes to awarding military contracts.”
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