During the last eight years, the Air Force has twice botched efforts to award one of the Pentagon’s richest contracts, a $35 billion order for tankers that can refuel warplanes in midair.
But now, as the Pentagon prepares to reopen the competition, some leading lawmakers and military analysts are suggesting a seemingly heretical notion: split the giant contract between the two rivals , Boeing and a joint venture involving Northrop Grumman and the European company that makes the Airbus planes.
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates opposes dividing the contract, which could be extended for decades and eventually cost $100 billion for more than 400 tankers. He said it would be “an absolutely terrible idea” to set up two production lines, and his aides estimate that such a move could add $14 billion to the cost in the next five years. But Representative John P. Murtha, a Democrat from Pennsylvania who is chairman of the House defense appropriations subcommittee, and Representative Neil Abercrombie, Democrat of Hawaii who heads another panel that oversees Air Force programs, say that may be the only practical way to break the impasse.
