DEMOPOLIS &8212; U.S. Sen. John McCain traveled with Gov. Bob Riley yesterday to appearances in Mobile and Demopolis.

According to McCain the Air Force is currently taking bids to replace its arsenal of mid-flight refueling planes. Many tankers in the current fleet have been in service since the Korean Conflict.

McCain also mentioned that if the mistakes made by the first attempt by the Air Force to retool the fleet hadn&8217;t been caught the mistakes &8220;would have cost a couple billion more.&8221;

According to McCain, Riley is pushing for the new fleet contract to go to a company based in Mobile.

McCain is slated to grab the chair of the Armed Service Committee if the GOP retains control of the Senate. This position will put him in a position to help the Mobile-based facility be a major competitor in the bid.

Wile in town, McCain also brought up the War in Iraq at the Black Belt Action Commission annual report.

According to McCain, the U.S. is going to be in Iraq for a long time and he feels that the U.S. must do better on the ground if it wants to pacify the situation as quickly as possible.

According to McCain, he has personal ties to the Demopolis area that lead him to accompany riley as well.

After being shot down McCain was a prisoner of war for five years.

McCain began his trip to Demopolis with a luncheon with the governor and members of the Marengo County Republican Party. Afterward, he spoke to the county party before joining Riley for the ceremony celebrating the second anniversary of the Black Belt Action Commission.