Young said federal procurement law barred any evaluation of the rival bids' potential impact on preserving the U.S. defence-industrial base, an issue of concern to Boeing backers. Nor were there plans to consider a U.S.-European aircraft subsidy dispute now before the World Trade Organization.
In addition to putting Young in charge, the Pentagon will also appoint a new source selection advisory committee to do the detailed analysis of the competing bids.
Northrop applauded the Pentagon's quick action on the tanker program, and said it was reviewing Wednesday's decision 'to ensure the re-competition will provide both companies a fair opportunity to present the strengths of their proposals.'
EADS welcomed the decision to reopen the contest without starting the entire process over again.
Boeing said it was concerned the new draft request for proposals could include changes that significantly altered the selection criteria from those initially set out. Boeing has argued its proposal was the only one that fully met the mandatory criteria of the original request for proposals.
'We look forward to working with the new acquisition team as it reopens the competition, but we will also take time to understand the updated solicitation to determine the right path forward for the company,' said Boeing spokesman Dan Beck.
BOEING CONCERNS
Alex Glass, spokeswoman for Washington Democrat Sen. Patty Murray, said Pentagon officials had said they planned to weigh life cycle costs across 25 years instead of 40 years and would give Northrop credit for exceeding the threshold requirement for the size of the airplane. 'Both of these things bias it toward the Airbus plane,' she said.
Young did not speak directly to those issues, but he said both firms would have a chance to modify their proposals, including even offering a different aircraft. Boeing backers have said the company would have bid its 777 airliner if it had known the Air Force wanted a bigger tanker.
Young said both the A330 and 767 were labelled 'medium-class tankers,' but their size was 'less of an issue' than how they met the military's requirements, including fuel carrying, survivability, maintainability, and handling on the ground.
He said the Pentagon would be clearer this time about how it would prioritize its 808 tanker requirements.
The 15-year contract is the first of three acquisition phases. The Air Force has said replacing its KC-135 tankers, built by Boeing but now averaging over 47 years of age, as its number-one purchase priority.
The GAO, a nonpartisan congressional watchdog, said in upholding Boeing's protest last month that the company would have had a 'substantial chance' of being selected if not for flaws in the evaluation process.
Amid a broadly lower stock market, Boeing shares traded slightly higher Wednesday before closing 0.5 percent lower at $65.59 on the New York Stock Exchange. Northrop shares closed 1.4 percent lower at $65.27, also on the NYSE.
