Lawmakers Urge DoD To Deny European Company Defense Contract

By Laura Smith - University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

A bipartisan collection of lawmakers urged the Department of Defense Wednesday not to award a military contract to European based aviation company Airbus following a recent World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling that the company received illegal subsidies from the European Union.

“We need fair competition with fair rules. [The] Department of Defense should not favor Airbus more than the WTO does. This is not a French government decision, this is a U.S. government decision,” Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) said.

Airbus is competing for a $40 billion contract from the Air Force against U.S. based manufacturer Boeing to replace aerial refueling tankers. The Department of Defense has said in September that they won’t consider the ruling by the WTO that Airbus received illegal subsidies.

Lawmakers, such as Brownback, Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) and Sen. Kit Bond (R-MO), are asking the Department of Defense to “level the playing field.”

"Airbus and the European Union have refused to allow fair competition," charged Murray. "They use the Aerospace industry as a jobs program and they use billions of dollars in illegal launch aid to fund it. They don’t even require Airbus to repay the subsidies if the aircraft does unsuccessful. So it’s no risk, all reward for the company."

“We can’t afford to undercut American companies," added Bond. "We need a fair competition and a level playing field for American workers and American companies.”