Letter to the Chairman from the Secretary
of State for Defence
I am writing to draw your attention to the Written
Ministerial Statement I am publishing today on the Future Strategic
Tanker Aircraft (FSTA) PFI programme.
Significant progress has been made with the
AirTanker Ltd consortium, comprising EADS, Rolls-Royce, Cobham,
VT Group and Thales, in developing a value for money PFI solution
to meet the needs of the Royal Air Force. As a result, AirTanker
will formally be announced as Preferred Bidder for the FSTA programme.
A final decision on whether to proceed is dependent
on a satisfactory conclusion of negotiations with AirTanker. This
is a complex programme and these negotiations, including a competition
for the financing of the deal, will take some time to conclude.
Geoffrey Hoon MP
28 February 2005
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