Copyright 2002 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Inc. St.
Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri)
September 4, 2002 Wednesday Five Star Lift
Edition
SECTION: BUSINESS ; Pg. C1
LENGTH: 352 words
HEADLINE:
SUPER HORNET GAINS A STAKE IN NEW ROLE; CONTRACT COULD BE WORTH $9
BILLION
BYLINE: Philip Dine Post-Dispatch
Washington Bureau
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
BODY: The Pentagon has taken a major
step toward choosing Boeing's St. Louis-built Super Hornet as the new U.S.
radar-jamming plane, a deal that could be worth $7 billion to $9 billion.
In a letter to Rep. Todd Akin, R-Mo., a top Navy official
said senior Defense Department officials will start spending money geared toward
making it possible for the Super Hornet, or F/A-18, to replace Northrop
Grumman's aging EA-6B Prowler as the nation's primary
electronic-warfare plane.
The Prowler's radar-jamming
capabilities have led the way in neutralizing enemy air-defense systems in the
early days of a battle, allowing U.S. fighters free use of the skies, essential
in modern warfare. Under the plan, Boeing would modify 90 to 125 Super Hornets,
adding jamming capabilities.
In the letter to Akin,
Assistant Secretary of the Navy John J. Young Jr. said he had "successfully
obtained Secretary (Pete) Aldridge's approval" to spend $5 million in EA-6B
replacement funds on the Super Hornet. Young is the Navy's chief of research,
development and acquisition.
Aldridge, undersecretary
of defense, is in charge of acquisitions for the Pentagon. Akin and Sen.
Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo., this year added the $5 million to the defense
budget for preliminary engineering to speed up replacement of the EA-6B.
"The bottom line," Akin said Tuesday, "is they're saying
they're taking the $5 million and putting it into moving ahead with the F/A-18.
This is really an important step in that process.
"We
feel we're on the cusp of our major (military) project for the last two years
coming to fruition here," said Akin, a member of the House Armed Services
Committee.
Ensign Dave Luckett, a Navy spokesman, said
the decision allows the Navy to "go forward with pre-system development and
demonstration activities on the F/A-18."
Paul Summers,
who leads Boeing's electronic-attack program, said that while a final Pentagon
decision on replacing the EA-6B won't come until next year: "This is a
significant step forward for our plans. We're viewing it as such, and we're
extremely pleased."
NOTES: Reporter
Philip Dine: E-mail: pdine@post-dispatch.com Phone: 202-298-6880