Wed, Dec 28, 2011
Will File Suit with Court of Federal Claims on US Air
Force Light Air Support Contract Bidding Process
It's still a mystery... but it's one that Hawker Beech intends
to get to the bottom of... Hawker Beechcraft has confirmed that
they will file a suit with the Court of Federal Claims following
notification late last week that the Government Accountability
Office (GAO) has declined to review its protest of the decision by
the U.S. Air Force to exclude the company's Beechcraft AT-6 from
the Light Air Support (LAS) competition.
The company still has no concrete reasons for the AT-6's
exclusion, having been denied explanation by the US Air Force on
two occasions. The LAS contract is valued at nearly $1 billion of
U.S. taxpayer money and exclusion of the AT-6 could result in a de
facto award to a non-U.S. company.
"We are disappointed in the GAO's decision as we were relying on
their investigation to provide transparency into what has been a
bidding process of inconsistent, irregular and constantly changing
requirements," said Bill Boisture, Hawker Beechcraft chairman and
CEO. "We find ourselves still without answers, which is
unacceptable, and continue to believe that our exclusion from this
important contract was made without basis in process or fact."
The AT-6 is a world-class, light attack aircraft that has been
evaluated and proven capable through a multi-year,
Congressionally-funded program led by the Air National Guard.
Hawker Beechcraft and its industrial partners worked closely with
the Air Force for two years to develop parameters for the LAS
competition and invested more than $100 million preparing to meet
the Air Force's specific requirements for a light attack
aircraft.
The benefits of the AT-6 far outweigh that of the competition's
offering, including the following important factors:
- The AT-6 is designed and manufactured in the US to be used by
the US and its allies.
- Keeping this contract in the U.S. will help preserve 1,400
domestic jobs at 181 companies in 39 states.
- The AT-6 draws its heritage from the airframe of the number-one
training aircraft in the world, the Beechcraft T-6. The company has
built more than 725 T-6 aircraft, which are used to train every
fixed-wing military pilot in the United States and are successfully
operated by six allied air forces around the world. The graduation
to the AT-6 light attack airplane would be a natural
progression.
- The AT-6 is the sum of the Air Force's proven T-6, A-10C
mission system and MC-12W sensor suite, which offers the Department
of Defense logistics and cost efficiencies that no other aircraft
in the competition can match.
- The weapons and avionics systems included on the AT-6 are
familiar to NATO allies and have been proven effective on many
continents and in other NATO aircraft.
"As a U.S. company, we believe we deserve a fair chance at this
contract," Boisture (pictured) said. "Hawker Beechcraft has been
delivering U.S. Department of Defense aircraft certified to
military specifications for more than 50 years. We are qualified
and prepared to continue doing so for the Air Force's LAS
operations with our capable, affordable and sustainable AT-6
aircraft.
"We are asking concerned Americans, members of the flying
military and anyone else dedicated to the success of U.S.
manufacturing, preservation of the aerospace industrial base and
U.S. tactical air power to take action to ensure the AT-6 gets
proper consideration for this Air Force contract."
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