Air Force deal means jobs for Ga.

The U.S. Air Force’s $40 billion contract to build a new fleet of air tankers may soon fuel a boom of new jobs in Georgia.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting Northrop Grumman, the California-based defense contractor that received the deal, could create 4,200 jobs in the state.

The company has manufacturing outlets in Vidalia, Atlanta and Milledgeville and subcontractors in Dublin and Chamblee.

The contract award has been controversial. U.S.-based Boeing Company and several U.S. lawmakers have protested plan, saying Northrop Grumman and its European partner company would send too many tanker production jobs overseas.

Delta predicts big order for planes

In Georgia business news … Delta Air Lines is buying new planes … lots of them. The Atlanta-based carrier tells the Wall Street Journal it may order as many as 125 of Boeing’s new 787 Dreamliner jets by the end of the year. Delta just emerged from a year-and-a-half-long bankruptcy. The company says it’s still negotiating seat configurations and how much the planes would cost to operate and maintain.