A Pentagon spokesman, Bryan Whitman, told Reuters news service Thursday that the Pentagon might entertain “reasonable extensions” in the KC-X tanker bid process “if necessary.” There has been some speculation that EADS might request such an extension to enter the competition sans Northrop Grumman, which withdrew the Northrop-EADS team from the bidding process earlier this month. However, Whitman said the Pentagon hasn’t received an extension request. Louis Gallois, EADS CEO, told reporters in New York earlier on Thursday that the existing 60-day timeframe for response to the request for proposals, makes it “impossible for anybody, even for Lockheed Martin, to build a solution,” according to a Bloomberg news service report (via Business Week).
Congress wants new engines in the F-35 fleet, with installs starting in 2027, according to language in the conference version of the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act. The Air Force is to use at least one of the engines developed under the Advanced Engine Transition Program, but the Navy and…