Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) released the following statement after a major European military contractor conceded its loss over a bid to build refueling tankers for the U.S. Air Force.
The contractor, the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company, said it would not protest the Pentagon’s decision to award the contract to Boeing, which is based in Chicago and employs hundreds in the Seattle area.
“Today is a proud day for all Washingtonians,” Canwell said. “Today’s announcement makes official what Washingtonians know in our bones: We build the best airplanes in the world. Even with the deck stacked against them, Washington aerospace workers prevailed over long odds, stiff competition and illegal foreign subsidies. Boeing, its workers and my colleagues in Congress never gave up in fighting for these 11,000 jobs.”
Fellow Washingtonian Patty Murray (D) also said she was encouraged by the news.
“This decision was a major victory for American workers, the American aerospace industry and America’s military,” Murray said. “And it is consistent with President Obama’s call to ‘out-innovate’ and ‘out-build’ the rest of the world.”