diff --git a/configure.ac b/configure.ac
index a272023e3f0..ac233058e1f 100644
--- a/configure.ac
+++ b/configure.ac
@@ -100,7 +100,7 @@ OPAL_VAR_SCOPE_POP
 #
 # Init automake
 #
-AM_INIT_AUTOMAKE([foreign dist-bzip2 subdir-objects no-define 1.12.2 tar-ustar])
+AM_INIT_AUTOMAKE([foreign dist-bzip2 subdir-objects no-define 1.12.2 tar-pax])
 
 # SILENT_RULES is new in AM 1.11, but we require 1.11 or higher via
 # autogen.  Limited testing shows that calling SILENT_RULES directly