While Boeing went public with the news that they had met with the Air Force to discuss their KC-X bid and would revise their offering, EADS NA has stayed mum and only went public when we gave them a call.
They also met on Monday with the Air Force. "We received final proposal revisions, which are due to the customer on Friday, Feb. 11 at 8 a.m at Wright Patterson (Air Force Base)," said Guy Hicks, head spokesman. Hicks refused to say whether his company would revise its bid.
We understand that among the details the Air Force disclosed to both companies were the IFARA [Integrated Fleet Aerial Refueling Assessment] score, the military construction score and the fuel burn score.
Given the culture of the two companies, and the fact that Boeing executives have reportedly revealed their deep unease with their chances of winning the contract, it seems reasonable to assume that EADS did not feel compelled to alter its bid because its scores left them feeling pretty confident.
If you do the calendar, and take into account the fact that several decision-making layers in the Pentagon -- and probably one or two in the White House given the keen French, British and German interest in the contract award -- must be notified of the results and make certain the decision is sound, it seems reasonable that a contract award would not be made before Feb. 28 and it might not be until March 4.
One footnote: EADS and Boeing will, we bet, use three or four delivery methods to get their final presentations to Wright-Pat. After all, they don't want to miss the deadline as someone once did.
