Disappointed in DOD's Decision to Further Delay Tanker Replacement

Press Release

Congressman Artur Davis released the following statement today in regards to the Department of Defense's announcement that it will once again delay the replacement of the Air Force's Eisenhower-era tankers:

"I am deeply disappointed that Secretary Gates has announced that the Pentagon will shut down the process for selecting a modern airborne tanker. By pushing this decision into the uncertainty of a new administration, Secretary Gates has rewarded the political gamesmanship and distortions that have marred the selection of a new tanker. The outside pressure tactics that sought to politicize a military decision have won.

"The Pentagon has consistently maintained that replacement of the Eisenhower-era KC-135 is a critical priority and should proceed as expeditiously as possible. There is no explanation for the Secretary's new conclusion that the old KC-135 fleet can be ‘adequately maintained…for the near future.' Not only is this shift in position unsupported by any evidence, it is too low a standard. In a time when there are multiple threats to our security, our military should be striving not for an ‘adequate' vehicle, but for the best possible fighter to meet the uncertainties of a dangerous world.

"There was a pathway to a prompt resolution of this contract dispute: as the Secretary appeared to recognize only a month ago, the GAO provided a narrow and specific pathway to correct the errors in the Air Force's initial procurement process. As the GAO's representatives testified to Congress, It is not necessary to begin this already four year delayed process from scratch. The fact that Secretary Gates has reversed himself, and done so on the astonishing grounds that his own Pentagon cannot make a ‘fair and objective decision,' is wrong and unjustified. I cannot help but fear that our soldiers deserve much better."

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