A 10-year bidding war to upgrade the KC-135 refueling tanker may finally have reached a conclusion Thursday with the announcement that the Boeing Co. has secured the $35 billion contract to manufacture the aircraft. The news prompted celebrations in Seattle and Wichita, Kan., the primary assembly points for the tanker. A sense of pride also was palpable in St. Louis, headquarters of Boeing Defense, Space and Security, the division coordinating tanker production.
