Aerospace union leaders are asking President Barack Obama to give Boeing Co. a bargaining edge in the upcoming Air Force tanker contract, in consideration of a recent World Trade Organization ruling that European nations are improperly subsidizing Boeing competitor Airbus.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers made public the letter to Obama during a press conference on Wednesday.

The letter contends that the WTO ruling shows that Airbus has an unfair advantage against Boeing in the tanker competition, and asks that the federal government take that into account during the bidding process.

An Airbus/Northrop Grumman consortium initially won the contract, but the award was later overturned.

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