Editorial: Building Refueling Tankers - WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.

Editorial: Building Refueling Tankers

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By John Shryock - bio | email

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Creating and keeping jobs dominates state house activity. 

One sure fire way to create several thousand jobs is for the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company to get the contract to build refueling tankers for the U.S. Air Force.  They plan to do it in Mobile and the spillover effect in job creation throughout the Gulf Coast would be considerable. 

EADS won the bid three years ago but Boeing challenged it and forced another bid process. 

EADS has already built the tanker.  Boeing hasn't.  Seems like that should weigh heavily in the decision process that has now taken 10 years but could conclude this month.  Especially since it would appear to be better not just for the war fighters, but taxpayers, as the EADS price point is best. 

An EADS bid win would help Alabama continue to outperform the rest of the country in employment numbers. Mobile is already experiencing strong growth as the T-K Steel plant construction is underway and Montgomery will be adding a thousand jobs with Hyundai Power Transformers building here.        

Politics prevented EADS from winning the bid before.  Let's hope pragmatism prevails this time.   

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