Just when I come out yesterday and tell you that all’s been quiet on the Boeing C-17 front, here comes the U.S. Senate just marching in to approve an order for ten more airplanes. Shows what I know.
The Senate Appropriations committee on defense yesterday voted to discontinue programs like the F-22 fighter jet and the VH-71 helicopter, but also set aside nearly $2.5 billion for the purchase of ten new C-17 aircraft.
The U.S. Government’s seesaw love affair with the aircraft continues after Defense Secretary Robert Gates distinctly stated months ago that the C-17 program was no longer necessary, but the Senate committee’s approval yesterday means that Boeing is one Presidential signature away from selling ten more planes and keeping the program alive through 2012, approximately.
The deal is waiting on approval from the House, and President Barack Obama will make the final decision to approve or not sometime this Fall. That’s big news here in Long Beach, where about 5,000 jobs defend on the aircraft’s manufacturing. The Press-Telegram‘s Kris Hanson has the story here.
California Senator Dianne Feinstein released a statement yesterday in support of the decision.
“Keeping the C-17 program alive is vital to our national security and will keep thousands of workers on the job at the C-17 production facility in Long Beach and at hundreds of suppliers around the country,” Senator Feinstein said. “If this funding is included in the final Defense Appropriations bill, it will mean that Boeing’s Long Beach assembly line will stay open at least through 2010. At this plant alone, that will mean that roughly 4,000 workers will continue to have work.”