Pentagon inspector general to probe Air Force tanker lease

The Defense Department inspector general has notified Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner, R-Va., that his office is conducting a formal investigation in connection with the Air Force's proposal to lease Boeing 767 commercial jets for use as aerial refueling tankers.

"I have advised that my investigative staff has received information from another senator's staff relating to the Air Force lease proposal," wrote Joseph Schmitz, the Pentagon's top investigator, in a letter dated Monday to Warner. "This is to advise you that the determination has been made that sufficient credible information exists to warrant an investigation."

In late August, Schmitz received roughly 8,000 e-mail exchanges and internal communications between Boeing executives and administration officials from Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain, R-Ariz., an outspoken critic of the multibillion-dollar lease. McCain obtained roughly 6,000 of the documents from Boeing attorneys.

McCain has called on Air Force Secretary James Roche and acting Pentagon acquisition chief Michael Wynne to release all of their records-including e-mail exchanges and internal memos-pertaining to the lease negotiations. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has yet to respond to McCain's request.

Schmitz did not name the subject of his investigation and did not articulate the scope of the probe, although Senate aides familiar with the issue suspect that Boeing's Darleen Druyun, a key architect of the controversial lease during her stint as Air Force acquisition chief, is the most likely target.

A number of e-mail exchanges supplied to Schmitz could implicate Druyun for having conveyed to Boeing personnel proprietary information belonging to European aerospace giant EADS, Boeing's chief competitor in the global aerospace market.

However, McCain's staff referred a number of issues for potential inquiry to Pentagon investigators, and the scope of the probe remains unclear. In his letter, Schmitz did not indicate whether his office would pursue a criminal investigation of the matter, though sources speculate the probe could look into possible criminal liability.

Boeing said late Wednesday that company officials have said all along that "we believe we received no proprietary information from any individual at any time on any subject throughout the entire tank lease process. We have no reason to change that opinion."

A company statement said: "If asked to support the investigation, we clearly will. We will continue to work with the Air Force, DoD, the administration and Congress to find the best solution to this crucial military requirement."