The controversial GE/Rolls-Royce F136 fighter engine was dealt a setback as the U.S. House of Representatives voted 233-to-198 to reject funding the project.
It's not apparent if GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt believes because he heads up a business committee via appointment by President Obama (another controversial issue) that he can attempt to ram the engine through the political process, while nobody wants it.
According to Defense Secretary Robert Gates, “The president, the military services and I continue to oppose this extra engine.”
Testifying before the House Armed Services Committee, Gates said he'll use “all available legal options” to stop the production of the engine if funding was approved.
Pratt & Whitney has already developed the lead engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. GE evidently can't take no for an answer because the plane is expected to be the top U.S. fighter plane for decades.
GE has attempted to manipulate the process by building a $51 million research center at the University of Dayton and continuing to work on the unwanted engine with close to 300 employees in Vandalia.
GE seem to think by spending its money on the project that obligates American taxpayers to allow its engine project to go forward. No thanks Government Electric.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
House Says No to Funding GE (GE) F136 Fighter Engine
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6 comments:
A nice addition to your article would be the thousands of jobs that will be lost.
I am one of the to be laid off people.
Sorry your losing your job... But we can't afford a new engine. Maintaining the engine program would be nothing more than a welfare program for only 1000 people. Maybe you should ask your rep. to raise taxes to pay for it.
This purpose of the alternative engine was to secure competitive bids on a major cost of the program.
Politically, cutting the competive engine out of the budget was a quick way tea party republicans could show progress in the short term.
On the business side, the PW F135 can now go into the cost plus-plus mode, given some time for the F136 to fall behind and be forgotten. The F135 will be the only game in town. What a wonderful business case that will be for PW.
The tax payer will payout more over time.
I'll probably be another one of the few thousand loosing their jobs over this. The only thing we can hope for now is the President to hold true to his word and veto it budget vote. I hope he does, or there's going to be a lot more unemployment claims in the coming months.
Historically, competition is good.
Entering the Second World War, the Army preferred the Curtis Wright P-40. FDR ordered the Army to procure the P-51 form North American Avaiation, a small innovative company at the time.
After the war NAA aerospace products excelled. CW diminished.
Hopefully, Obama has the wisdom of FDR to see the need for competion and not business as usual.
IT WOULD BE GREAT TO PUBLISH THE NAMES OF THE 198 THAT VOTED FOR THIS PORK, AND IF THEY RECEIVED MONEY FROM G.E.
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