WASHINGTON (AP) - EADS North America, part of European Aeronautic Defence
and Space Co., spent $850,000 on its own behalf in the first quarter to lobby on
Pentagon contracts, including a massive Air Force order for aerial refueling
tankers, according to a disclosure report filed April 22.
The North American arm of the European aerospace and defense contractor,
which is the parent of Airbus, focused much of its lobbying on Congress and the
Defense Department during the first three months of the year.
EADS and its U.S. partner, Northrop Grumman Corp., recently beat out Boeing
Co. for a $35 billion contract to supply 179 air-to-air refueling tankers to the
Air Force. The deal is the first of three Air Force awards worth as much $100
billion to replace the entire fleet of nearly 600 tankers over the next 30
years.
Boeing, which has been supplying refueling tankers to the Air Force for 50
years, has filed a formal protest of the decision with the Government
Accountability Office. And Boeing supporters in Congress have hauled Air Force
officials up to Capitol Hill multiple times in recent weeks to explain their
decision to award the contract to a team that includes a European company.
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