Boeing lost air tanker deal decisively-analyst

WASHINGTON, Mar 4: Details emerged yesterday about how dramatically Northrop Grumman Corp and its European partner beat Boeing Co to win a 35 billion dollar tanker aircraft competition, as furious Boeing supporters called the contract ''a multibillion dollar gift to Europe.''

''This was not a close outcome in any sense of the term,'' defense analyst Loren Thompson of the Lexington Institute told Reuters, describing how Boeing failed to beat Northrop in any of the key criteria for the aerial refueling contract.

''Northrop won decisively and completely,'' said Thompson, who has close ties to the Air Force.

Kenneth Miller, special assistant to Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne, met with Boeing supporters on Capitol Hill yesterday to explain the decision even as union leaders demanded legislative action to block contract awards to foreign companies that receive anti-competitive subsidies.

''This will go down in history as the moment when the Department of Defense sold the US aerospace industry to the French,'' Gabriela Lemus, head of the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, said in a conference call.

Miller did not provide many details about how the bids compared, but Air Force officials said on Friday the Northrop plane was superior and offered more for the money.

This could make it difficult for Boeing supporters in Congress to argue for a reversal of the Air Force decision, and might give Boeing pause about protesting it.

In a report yesterday, Thompson wrote that Boeing matched the appeal of the Northrop bid only in the area of proposal risk. And that came only after Air Force reviewers pressed Boeing to stretch out its aggressive development schedule for a new version of its 767 jet, which added to the cost.

The Boeing proposal was initially rated ''high-risk'' because reviewers worried that Boeing's plan to build a new version of the 767 using parts from other versions would add to the cost.

Northrop proposed a tanker based on the Airbus A330 aircraft built by Europe's EADS. Northrop-EADS won in four of the five criteria set by the Air Force: mission capability, past performance, price, and an integrated fleet assessment, according to Thompson.

''Although some observers expected that the Northrop team would offer a better price, nobody expected that they would be better in every significant regard,'' Thompson told Reuters.

The Air Force will buy 179 refueling planes over the next 15 years to begin replacing its Boeing-built KC-135 tankers, on average 47 years old. The new planes will refuel fighter jets and other warplanes in midair, extending their range.

Thompson's report said Air Force reviewers concluded that buying the Boeing tanker would have resulted in a slower replacement rate. They predicted that Northrop would have ''49 superior tankers operating by 2013, whereas if they went with the Boeing proposal, they would have only 19 considerably less capable planes in that year,'' he wrote.

Northrop's refueling capacity was seen as superior at a range of 1,000 nautical miles and ''substantially superior'' at 2,000 miles, Thompson said.

Air Force reviewers were also less confident about Boeing's past performance due to ''poor execution'' in three relevant programs, including long-delayed tanker deliveries to Japan and Italy, Thompson said. Northrop got higher ratings due to ''satisfactory'' execution on six programs considered relevant.

Boeing has said it would review its options and whether it would file a protest after it receives a detailed briefing from the Air Force around March 12.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) that reviews contract protests said Boeing had five days to file a protest after the briefing if it wanted to halt Northrop work on the contract, and 10 days to file a regular protest. (AGENCIES)

Tossing and Turning in bed: It's not love but exhaustion

LONDON, Mar 4: You spend your day yawning, waiting for night to come but wake up the next day feeling all the more exhausted?

According to a leading sleep reseacher, you could have joined the race of million others suffering from low-grade exhaustion.

And blame your bedtime, your pillow or even your night clothes that may be disturbing your sleep.

A report published today states that even as people think they were sleeping well, but these things may be responsible for the toss and turns throughout the night, and therefore affecting both the quality and duration of sleep resulting in chronic tiredness.

The recent statistics reveal that more than ten million people were too tired to get out of bed every day, even though many of them claimed to fall asleep within minutes of hitting the pillow.

Sleep expert Neil Stanley said the number of people suffering from sleep disturbance peaks at this time of year, with more than half the population experiencing some kind of sleep disturbance.

The sudden rise in fatigue was linked to changing routines, he said, adding, ''Holiday periods put many people's sleeping patterns out of sync because they usually go to bed late and sleep longer.''

It took several days to adjust to regular sleep patterns after a holiday or flight abroad. Losing an hour's sleep takes three days for body clocks to adjust. Many people, however, never get a chance to recover the sleep they lose in that time.

Uncomfortable beds and pllows also affect the sleeping patterns. An uncomfortable pillow will affect the lying posture and aggravate, strain to the muscles in the shoulders, back and neck that can affect posture, breathing and even mood. (UNI)

Virgin buys Rolls engines, sees no new US flights

NEW YORK, Mar 4:Virgin Atlantic Airways said on Monday it would buy engines from Britain's Rolls-Royce Group Plc worth $2.6 billion to power the fleet of Boeing Co 787 Dreamliners it ordered last year.

The deal, announced by Virgin Chairman Richard Branson in New York, includes 15 sets of installed Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines, four spares, and engines for another 28 787s, which Virgin has not yet committed to buy.

Branson said the 787 planes might ultimately help Virgin expand its transatlantic services to other European cities. But he said his airline had no immediate plans to take advantage of the Open Skies aviation agreement, which will liberalize U.S.-European travel when it takes effect at the end of March.

''Ideally we'd like to be flying from a number of European cities,'' Branson said on Monday. ''At the moment, we have a shortage of planes,'' he said, making it better to focus operations on its profitable London routes.

Virgin's rival British Airways plans to start flights between mainland Europe and the United States in June.

Branson said there would be similar possibilities for Virgin when its starts taking deliveries of its Boeing 787s in 2011 if the Open Skies agreement is still in effect.

OPEN SKIES NIGH

Last year the, United States and Europe Union agreed to put aside old bilateral arrangements and allow direct flights from any city in the 27-nation European bloc to any U.S. City and vice versa from March 30.

But European states have threatened to scrap the deal if the United States does not follow through on commitments to raise foreign ownership limits on U.S. Airlines and allow foreigners to run U.S. Domestic services by 2010.

Branson said he hoped the U.S. Congress would have the courage to make sure the United States fulfilled its promise to open its aviation market, and called on them to be ''brave'' rather than protectionist.

The chairman and founder of Virgin said he was not immediately interested in competing in the emerging market for all-business-class transatlantic flights. Virgin's interests include rail travel, hotels, telecommunications and financial services.

The recent crop of business-class only airlines are ''all losing their shirts'', Branson said, adding that he was ''watching with interest'' to see if anyone could make money out of it.

British Airways is planning to launch twice-daily business flights from London's financial district to New York, challenging start-ups Eos and Silverjet, which pioneered business-class-only flights in the last couple of years.

The niche market has not been entirely successful. Start-up MAXjet, which also offered business-class-only flights, filed for bankruptcy protection last year.

WAITING ON THE 787

Last April, Virgin announced its order for 15 of Boeing's new carbon-composite 787s, worth $2.8 billion at list prices, plus options and purchase rights on another 28 planes.

Deliveries of the planes are due to start in 2011, but may be delayed as Boeing struggles to put the first few 787s together for test flights. The project is about nine months behind schedule.

Virgin uses Rolls-Royce engines on its 19 Airbus A340-600 jetliners, but uses CFM International engines for its six smaller A340-300s. CFM International is a joint venture between General Electric Co and France's Safran. Virgin uses General Electric engines on its 13 Boeing 747 jumbos. (AGENCIES)

Non-Muslims flock to sumptuous mosque

ABU DHABI, Mar 4: Dozens of Westerners, including black-clad women, have been flocking to Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Abu Dhabi, an architectural masterpiece graced with a Persian carpet said to be the biggest in the world.

"It is the third biggest mosque in the world after the Haramain," boasted the project's deputy head, Khawla al-Suleimani, after Islam's two holiest sites in Saudi Arabia -- Mecca's Grand Mosque and the Prophet's Mosque in Medina.

But unlike these two mosques, the one named after the United Arab Emirates' late founding father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahayan, is not off-limits to non-Muslims.

In fact, the opposite is true -- with some provisos.

Women must cover themselves from head to toe in abayas, or long black robes, handed them at the entrance.

"And non-Muslims must not touch the Koran," the Muslim holy book, copies of which are stacked in every prayer room, cautions one of the guides.

Armed with cameras to capture the splendour of the place, visitors have been coming from within the UAE "but also from abroad," said Suleimani.

"Hundreds have been coming every week since the opening (of the mosque) on the first day of Eid al-Adha," the Muslim feast of sacrifice which fell in December, she added.

The project was launched in 1998 by Sheikh Zayed, who besides being the UAE's first president was also ruler of the oil-rich emirate of Abu Dhabi, one of seven making up the Gulf federation. Work will be fully completed in November 2009.

Sheikh Zayed, who died in November 2004, is buried in a courtyard adjacent to the mosque.

"The mosque is dedicated to the father of the nation, whose vision was founded on dialogue between religions, civilisations and cultures," say brochures handed out to visitors by the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority. (AGENCIES)

GM, Ford US Feb auto sales fall double digits

DETROIT, Mar 4: US automakers General Motors Corp and Ford Motor Co on Monday reported double-digit US sales declines in February and cut second-quarter production plans in the face of a slumping economy and high gas prices.

GM's sales slid 16 percent on an adjusted basis -- at the bearishly high end of analysts' expectations -- on weaker demand for such large trucks as the Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck and Chevy Tahoe and Saturn Vue sport utility vehicles. It also said it would cut second-quarter production by 5 percent from year-ago levels.

''February was a very disappointing month for industry sales. I think most everyone is going to be down,'' GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz told Reuters at the Geneva auto show.

''We still expect the economy to recover in the second half,'' he added. ''Our crystal ball is not that much better than anybody else's.''

Auto sales results represent one of the first snapshots of overall U.S. Consumer demand, and the weakness could provide more evidence for those who believe the U.S. Economy has already slipped into recession.

Ford's sales fell 10 percent and said it would cut second-quarter production by 10 percent due to weaker demand for its market-leading F-Series full-size pickups and SUVs like the Explorer and Expedition.

Japan's Toyota Motor Corp and Nissan Motor Co Ltd reported February sales declines of 6.6 percent and 3 percent, respectively, while Honda Motor Co Ltd did the best among major automakers with an increase of nearly 1 percent. Chrysler LLC is scheduled to report sales later on Monday.

Sales numbers were adjusted for an additional selling day in February compared with a year earlier.

''It would be premature, certainly, to conclude that either the economy or the industry have reached bottom yet, but we are doing our best to maintain a steady hand on the wheel as we navigate through this current down cycle,'' Ford economist Emily Kolinski Morris said on a conference call with analysts and reporters.

She added that Ford, the No. 3 automaker by sales in the U.S. Market, expects US gross domestic product this year of about 1.5 percent.

Analysts expect industrywide 2008 US auto sales to extend a downturn that began to accelerate in the second half of last year, reflecting the slumping housing market, higher gas prices and tighter credit. Some industry observers have even predicted a 15-year low for sales this year.

''We're obviously not insulated from the subprime crisis or the 'R' word that everyone is talking about,'' Nissan division manager Al Castignetti told Reuters in a telephone interview.

Kolinski Morris said Ford's expectations of a better second half in U.S. Vehicle sales is not dependent on a recovery in the slumping U.S. Housing market.

However, demand doesn't seem to be improving in the near term.

''There was a two-week period that closed the month that was pretty stale,'' Ford chief sales analyst George Pipas said. ''That was true for Ford; it was true for the industry.''

As a result, Ford said it would eliminate shifts at four U.S. Plants and lay off some 2,500 workers -- or almost 5 percent of its remaining work force -- as part of an effort to cut costs and return to profitability next year.

The layoffs come as the automaker is offering buyouts and early retirement incentives to all 54,000 of its U.S. Factory workers in an attempt to recover from a $2.7 billion loss in 2007.

Toyota's February sales fell 6.3 percent for its Toyota brand and another 9.3 percent for its luxury Lexus unit as overall sales of both cars and trucks fell.

Nissan's sales in its Nissan brand fell 3.2 percent, while its luxury Infiniti unit reported a decline of 0.4 percent.

As sales have slumped, incentives have risen among most automakers. Edmunds.Com said industry incentives in February rose 17 percent to $2.95 billion, with the three U.S. automakers accounting for almost 71 percent of the total.

On an average basis, U.S. Incentives in February rose almost 1 percent, or $22, from the prior month to $2,435 per vehicle sold, according to the industry tracking service.

Ford marketing chief Jim Farley said the automaker had stepped up incentives on some vehicles like the F-150 pickup truck line, but added that Ford's overall incentive spending was lower than a year earlier.

''The industry as a whole is going to be seeing more pricing pressure,'' said Farley, who expects stepped-up discounting on full-size trucks and SUVs ahead of the launch later this year of Ford's new F-150 line.

(AGENCIES)

B'desh politicians hiding in India, claim officials

DHAKA, Mar 4: Nearly 100 high-profile Bangladeshi politicians have fled to India and other countries to evade arrest under the military-backed government's massive anti-graft drive, officials claimed here.

Police said 30 of the absconders have been sentenced for varied jail terms. The latest being prominent Awami League leader Abul Hasnat Abdullah who was handed down a 13-year jail term by a Dhaka court yesterday for illegally amassing wealth and concealing information.

A senior police official preferring anonymity said Abdullah was hiding in India along with his son, who was sentenced to eight-year imprisonment on a corruption charge earlier.

Abdullah, former parliamentary chief whip of Sheikh Hasina's Awami League, had been sentenced to nine years in jail by another court for tax evasion after trial in absentia.

Bangladesh police had earlier sought Interpol's assistance to track down the convicted politicians and suspects who fled the country after the anti-graft crackdown was launched by the interim administration in January last year following proclamation of state of emergency.

Police chief Noor Mohammad recently said they were trying to confirm the current whereabouts of the fugitives as many of them were hiding abroad with their family members.

The Prothom Alo newspaper quoting unnamed political sources today reported that a number of politicians including Awami League leaders Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, Akhtaruzzaman Chowdhury Babu, AFM Bahauddin Nasim and former BNP minister Shahjahan Siraj and lawmaker Nadeem Mostafa were hiding in India. (PTI)

OPEC unlikely to be moved by $100 oil

VIENNA, Mar 4: Oil prices of more than $100 a barrel are unlikely to convince OPEC ministers meeting in Vienna this week to raise output, which they say is more than adequate.

Consumers, led by top fuel burner the United States, have urged the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to produce more oil in an attempt to cool prices and to limit economic slowdown.

U.S. Crude hit a new record of $103.95 on Monday.

OPEC ministers have said prices have been driven by factors beyond their control, including a weak U.S. Dollar and political tension, and not by a lack of oil.

OPEC President Chakib Khelil said the group's two options when it meets on Wednesday in Vienna were to keep output steady or to reduce it.

''I don't think OPEC would consider increasing production because then we would be increasing to meet demand that doesn't exist,'' Khelil told reporters.

Given that inventories are already high, he said an output increase would not lower prices.

An OPEC source said no change would be a logical outcome, but the strength of oil prices meant ministers might talk about increasing production slightly.

''The fundamentals do not support this, but the price is clearly too high,'' the source said.

Another OPEC source said there was an argument for leaving output unchanged for the rest of the year.

The latest government data showed U.S. Crude inventories had risen for a seventh week in a row, while gasoline stockpiles reached their highest for 14 years.

POLITICAL TENSION

Some of the strength in the oil market derives from political tension involving OPEC nations.

OPEC members Venezuela and Ecuador have sent troops to their borders with Colombia after Colombia bombed and sent troops inside Ecuador at the weekend.

Venezuela is also in dispute with U.S. Oil major Exxon Mobil , which has won court orders freezing up to $12 billion of the country's assets.

Ecuador will put Venezuela's case to Wednesday's OPEC meeting to seek support in its dispute with Exxon Mobil, Ecuador Oil Minister Galo Chiriboga said.

OPEC's most influential member Saudi Arabia would not be led on the outcome of this week's meeting.

But the kingdom's Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said in an interview published at the weekend prices would not fall below $60-$70 a barrel as this was the minimum level at which alternatives to conventional oil were economically viable.

OPEC, which pumps more than a third of the world's oil, last met on Feb. 1 when it left output unchanged. It has not agreed a formal increase since September last year.

A Reuters survey found OPEC output fell slightly in February, the first deline since August last year. The group is now pumping only 110,000 barrels per day above its agreed target.

Any formal deal on Wednesday to hold supplies steady would leave latitude for quietly adjusting output to reflect demand.

In addition, ministers are likely to call an extraordinary meeting in the next month or two to review the situation, delegates said.

(AGENCIES)

HRW urges China to improve protection in key human rights area

NEW YORK, Mar 4: A global human rights watchdog has asked Chinese leadership to fulfil its commitment of promoting social justice and take up reforms to improve protection in ten key human rights situations during its parliament's annual session from tomorrow.

In a letter to Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, the Human Rights Watch expressed regret at the Chinese government's failure to make "substantial progress" on the key human rights concerns at the last year's session of National People's Congress and asked him to implement his stated commitment to promoting social justice and building rule of law.

"Chinese leaders have committed themselves to promoting social justice, ensuring freedom of expression, and building the rule of law, yet their rhetoric hasn't been matched by action," said Sophie Richardson Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch, and asked them to fulfil their commitments.

The vital reforms identified by Human Rights Watch includes ending repression of activists, petitioners and lawyers, abolishing re-education through labour, ratifying the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, allowing non-governmental organisations to register freely, narrowing the scope of application for state secrets laws, and reversing the practise of censoring the internet and the media.

"It is not too late for Chinese leaders to adopt these reforms and show that they will follow through on their promises," Richardson said, adding: "Now is the time for rhetoric to be matched by action." (PTI)

Big breasts win verdict for Japanese pin-up

TOKYO, Mar 4: A Japanese pin-up model says that her big breasts have not only boosted her career-they also helped her overturn a court verdict.

The bikini model, who goes by her professional name Serena Kozakura, was cleared after a court decided she was too well-endowed to squeeze into a room through a hole, as she had been found guilty of earlier.

"I used to hate my body so much," Kozakura, who has appeared in product commercials on television, told the private Asahi network in an interview aired today.

"But it was my breasts" that won in court, she said.

The case was splashed through the Japanese media today, with the Asahi network even inviting her to demonstrate how she could not fit through the opening.

Kozakura, 38, was convicted last year of property destruction after a man said she kicked in the wooden door of his room and crawled inside, apparently because he was with another woman.

Kozakura had said the man made the hole himself.

In her appeal, the defence counsel held up a plate showing the size of the hole and said that she could not squeeze through with her 110-centimetre (44-inch) bust.

"The judges were very good-mannered as they showed no expressions on their faces. I guess they’re well-trained," Kozakura said.

Tokyo High Court presiding judge Kunio Harada agreed and threw out the guilty verdict yesterday, saying there was reasonable doubt over the man’s account. (AGENCIES)

That Bulge reduces your life by two years

SYDNEY, Mar 4: Life expectancy of chubby kids reduces by two years by the time they become young adults, a new study suggests.

The research conducted at the University of Western Australia further revealed that obese adults cut their life expectancy by four years.

Proving that obesity shortened life, the report also stated that girls were at a greater risk than boys.

Overweight people with a Body Mass Index (BMI) between 25 and 30, have six months less than average expectancy. Those with a BMI over 30 live for between 3.5 and 4.5 fewer years.

The new statistics ring alarm bells about a need to make a serious change for the better in the realm of obesity.

As many as 58 per cent of men and 42 per cent of women are either overweight or obese. About a quarter of children fit into either category.

Professor Mike Daube said obesity epidemic was becoming a national catastrophe.

''Changing behaviour is difficult but if you look at tobacco, ten years ago, we were failing and suddenly now it's a success story.''

Same success can be achieved with obesity but only if it is treated with the same level of seriousness, the Australian quoted him as saying.

(UNI)

Hungry sharks take strange walks to find food

WASHINGTON, Mar 4: The way sharks go out searching for food and prey is very similar to the pattern which we adopt during shopping, suggests a new study.

The results of the international study shows that the animals_ behaviour seems to have evolved as a general 'rule' to search for sparsely distributed prey in the vast expanse of the ocean.

''Systematic searching is not the most efficient strategy if you_re looking for sparse items. If you go to the supermarket to buy eggs you look for them in one place, and if you don_t find them there you choose another location to look in,'' Dr David Sims from the Marine Biological Association and the University of Plymouth, who led the research, said, Science Daily reported.

''You probably won_t start at one end of the supermarket and search every aisle. Predators increase energy gain by adopting the Levy Walk, so they can travel further to find food,'' he added.

The researchers analysed the dive data from sophisticated electronic tags attached to a diverse range of marine predators, such as sharks, tuna, cod, sea turtles and penguins, in various locations around the world.

The researchers compared this data to the distribution patterns of their prey and found similarities, suggesting that the predators have evolved this search rule to get the best possible results from their foraging expeditions.

''We developed a computer model from the foraging data, and this confirmed that the observed patterns were indeed optimal for naturally dynamic prey fields,'' Dr Sims said.

''The search rule seems to be a general solution for success in complex and changeable environments,''he added.

Similar movement patterns appear to be present in other species_ behaviour, including human travel dynamics, hinting that the patterns discovered by the team may be universal. (UNI)

Family meals 'a thing of the past', TV/mobiles takes over

LONDON, Mar 4: Remember the last time you sat down to a meal with your family in the absence of TVs and mobiles and talked through family issues with each other?

Probably months back.

Family meals today are a thing of the past with only a fifth of families having a meal together at least once or twice a week, a survey has found.

Three-quarters of 1,000 families surveyed said they were so busy they hardly ever found the time to talk through their problems.

A family should aim to spend at least 20 minutes at the table to help foster meaningful conversations, The Daily Mail quoted Psychologist Pat Spungin, a parenting expert as saying.

She said there were three phases to a meal, all equally important. In the first, communication is mostly practical as the cooking is finished and everyone sits down. Then comes settling in, where the family members exchange small talk.

The final phase is ''sweet talk'', which Dr Spungin says is crucial to building relationships.

Families need to spend significant time together to enjoy in-depth conversations and share their experiences, stories and worries.

The survey, by Heinz, showed that this time was being eroded - not just by TV but by mobile phones, games consoles and computers, said Dr Spungin.

Modern families take less and less time to chat with each other even without other distractions.

"Conversation is the glue of family life. So when families do sit down at the table, it's important they make the most of the time. Talking through family issues is the key to family bonding,'' she added.

(UNI)