Top Contractors Compete for Cargo Plane

Posted on: Apr. 28th, 2006 || Source: dfw.com | E-mail Article | Print Article

Three of the top five U.S. defense contractors, including Boeing and Lockheed, have chosen sides in a competition for a potential $5 billion military cargo aircraft contract.

Boeing announced Thursday that it would join a team headed by Greenville-based L-3 Communications Integrated Systems and Italian aircraft manufacturer Alenia Aeronautica to bid on the contract for the joint cargo aircraft, a medium-sized cargo plane for the Army and Air Force.

Also contending are Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, which was once allied with Alenia, and a team comprised of Raytheon, EADS North America and Spain’s CASA.

It’s a competition that’s been marked by shifting international political alliances aimed at appealing to Pentagon officials and appeasing “Buy America” advocates.

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