Replies

The Airbus tanker was in development and not on offer when Italy signed this agreement in 2002.

http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4366294

5 posted on 01/27/2011 8:57:52 PM PST by DesertRhino (I was standing with a rifle, waiting for soviet paratroopers, but communists just ran for office)

Ok, im confused. Why wouldn’t THEY buy the EU subsidized Airbus tanker? Italy is EU isnt it?

Italy prefers to subsidize Boeing (http://igeographer.lib.indstate.edu/pritchard.pdf).

Seriously: if you look at the ownership and the corporate history, EADS / Airbus is French, German, British and Spanish.
Italian Finmeccanica / Alenia (30% of which is owned by the Italian government) on the other hand has longstanding ties with Boeing / McDonnell Douglas as a supplier and business partner.

The Italian government has subsidized Boeing projects which in turn Italian companies were a part of. Although Italy is part of the EU, in the A(irbus) vs. B(oeing) saga, Italy is in the B camp.

11 posted on 01/30/2011 3:35:04 PM PST by wolf78 (Inflation is a form of taxation, too. Cranky Libertarian - equal opportunity offender.)