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Reuters: Boeing Tanker Lease Remains 'Complicated' Friday May 9, 2:03 pm ET By Jim Wolf WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Boeing Co.'s (NYSE:BA - News) multi-billion proposal to lease 100 jets to the U.S. Air Force as refueling tankers remains a 'complicated issue,' the Defense Department said Friday. ADVERTISEMENT The department, which must endorse any deal before it goes to the White House budget office and ultimately to Congress, cannot rush its work because of the issue's complexities, said Cheryl Irwin, a Pentagon spokeswoman. 'This is a complicated issue and one that deserves the closest attention to make certain that we make...

<p>Fifteen months ago, the struggling Boeing Co.'s ambitious plan for a $17billion revenue boost was stuck deep in a Washington quagmire.</p> <p>The aerospace giant wanted to lease to the Pentagon 100 of its 767 airliners modified as aerial refueling tankers, and it had won over the Air Force and key members of Congress.</p>

Kansas Congressman Todd Tiahrt says the Department of Defense has approved the deal to lease and purchase new tankers for the United States Air Force. Tiahrt says acceptance of the deal brings to an end two years of negotiations and wrangling over the agreement. "Over the next year we should see more aerospace jobs come back into play in our community," Tiahrt said. "The upside is 4,000 when you suppliers into consideration." Here are the basic terms of the deal: Each aircraft will cost $131 million. The lease is a firm, fixed-price contract with Boeing's profit margin not to exceed...