O’Keefe: Tanker Gaffe Not Immediate Concern

The Air Force responded “by the book” when it realized that it had mistakenly passed Boeing and EADS North America information on the other’s KC-X tanker bid, EADS North America chief executive officer Sean O’Keefe told reporters Monday in Washington, D.C. EADS also responded properly by promptly returning the misdirected documents without viewing them, added O’Keefe. He said he was not immediately concerned about the mix-up. In fact, he said the KC-X competition has been “the most above board, fair, and open competitive process I’ve ever had any affiliation with.” News that the KC-X contract announcement will slip into 2011 came as “no surprise, not because of any particular set of issues, or incidents,” but because the Air Force is being “incredibly diligent” to assure that every step is completed properly, he said. Boeing had no comment, referring queries to the Air Force.