New competitor joins race to build Air Force tankers

Source URL: http://www.al.com/news/mobileregister/index.ssf?/base/news/115019013365800.xml&coll=3
Posted at: http://www.air-attack/com/news/news_article/1703

Omega Air Refueling Inc. said Monday it had joined the contest to build refueling tankers for the U.S. Air Force, one of two twists in the competition that could impact Mobile's chances at assembling the planes.

Omega, a subsidiary of the Dublin, Ireland-based Omega Air Ltd., said it would offer the Air Force a retrofitted DC-10 airplane for use as a tanker. The entry, submitted to the Air Force on Friday, makes Omega the third candidate in a field that also includes Boeing Co. and a team led by Northrop Grumman Corp. and EADS North America Inc.

In a second development Monday, the Northrop-EADS team said it had asked the Pentagon to keep the competition separated from an ongoing trade dispute between Boeing and Airbus over commercial aircraft subsidies.

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