|
|
 Victory for POGO and the Taxpayers. Air Force restructures C-130J contract as POGO had recommended in its March, 2005 report – saving $168 million. POGO thanks Senator McCain for his leadership on restoring integrity to Pentagon buying. October 26, 2006. 'Incomplete' Report Used to Save Lockheed Project, Pentagon Says, The
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld relied on potentially faulty data when he saved Lockheed Martin Corp.'s C-130J Hercules from cancellation last year, the Pentagon inspector general said in a report yesterday that partly blamed a poorly written contract for keeping the transport plane alive. The Pentagon had recommended canceling the program, which had been plagued by rising costs and questions about its performance. However, an Air Force report to Rumsfeld concluded that it would cost nearly as much to cancel the contract -- about $1.78 billion -- as it would to complete it. That finding, along with intense pressure from members of Congress worried about jobs in their districts and industry leaders worried about Lockheed, prompted Rumsfeld to reverse course. The new report challenged the Air Force's conclusions, saying it may have overstated the co st of canceling the contract by as much as $1.1 billion. … "How could you decide to buy something and not know how much it costs to get out of the contract?" said Jennifer Gore, spokeswoman for the Project on Government Oversight. "This shouldn't have been a commercial contract in the first place." Department of Defense Office of the Inspector General Report: Acquisition: Contracting and Funding for the C-130J Aircraft Program. June 21, 2006. Pentagon Decides Not to Cancel C-130J, Washington Post, May 12, 2005.The Pentagon yesterday abandoned a plan to kill Lockheed Martin Corp.'s C-130J transport plane contract, after determining it would cost almost as much to cancel the program as to complete it. Rumsfeld Reverses Decision to Cancel a Disputed Plane, New York Times, May 12, 2005. POGO Alert - Taxpayer Groups Tell Chambliss C-130J Transport Aircraft Pork Shouldn’t Fly, April 29, 2005. POGO, National Taxpayers Union, and Taxpayers for Common Sense urge Members of Congress to support the termination of the C-130J transport aircraft. April 28, 2005. The Bush Administration wisely wants to cancel the C-130J. Senators who want to protect pork-barrel politics are attempting to stop the cancellation. POGO and Taxpayers for Common Sense sent this letter opposing the C-130J. April 18, 2005. “The Flawed Plane Congress Loves: Rumsfeld Fights to Kill Cargo Plane that Can’t Fly Its Missions,” New York Times, March 24, 2005.It is hard to imagine an airplane with more problems than the C-130J, the latest version of the venerable workhorse the Air Force uses to drop cargo and paratroopers into global hot spots. Why They Say This Plane Shouldn’t Fly, New York Times, May 15, 2005.Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld wanted to kill the C-130J military transport plane. POGO Report - Taxpayers Carry The Load: The C-130J Cargo Plane Does Not. March 15, 2005. POGO Alert - McCain Puts Spotlight on Pentagon Contracts. March 15, 2005. Written Testimony of POGO's Danielle Brian on DoD's Use of "Commercial" Acquisition and "Other Transaction Authority" before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Airland Subcommittee, March 15 & 16, 2005. GAO finds second case of misconduct in Druyun contracts and recommends a new competition for avionics upgrades for C-130 aircraft.
National Taxpayers Union joins POGO in calling for C-130J cancellation, February 24, 2005. POGO Alert - Taxpayer Groups Call on Rumsfeld to Cancel C-130J. February 24, 2005. “24 Senators Urge President Bush to Spare C130J” but they received $180,000 in campaign contributions from the plane’s manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, in the past five years, according to data compiled by POGO, February 24, 2005.To learn more about why the Senators’ letter is misleading, see POGO’s Blog entry “Question: When is a C-130 not a C-130?” January 18, 2005. Lockheed clamps down on C-130J info, Washington Times, February 11, 2005.A Lockheed Martin executive on Monday strictly limited U.S. Air Force access to information about the C-130J aircraft program, which the service plans to terminate. POGO Investigative Lead - Lockheed Keeps Pentagon in Dark on C-130J? February 11, 2005. POGO Alert - C-130J Flunks Testing, January 24, 2005. The C-130J is a “contractor-initiated” program (see pg.38) and “Although it retains the exterior and interior dimensions of its predecessors, more than 70 percent of this model is unique” according to a study by the Rand Corporation, “Test and Evaluation Trends and Costs for Aircraft and Guided Weapons,” 2004. “Pentagon Slashes $30 Billion From Major Navy, Air Force, Missile Defense Programs,” including the C-130J program, InsideDefense.com, December 30, 2004. "Defense Audits Kept Behind Closed Doors,"
A Pentagon inspector general's report made headlines this summer by slamming the Air Force's purchase of 50 transport planes that jumped in price and remained unfit for combat duty five years after delivery of the first aircraft. "C-130J Military Transport Airplanes Deemed Unfit for War," ABC World News Tonight. November 17, 2004.The C-130J tactical transport aircraft was supposed to be the U.S. Air Force's state-of-the-art cargo plane to fly troops and supplies into dangerous areas. Air Force Faulted on 50-Plane Purchase, Transport Craft Fail Key Readiness Tests, The Washington Post, July 24, 2004.The Air Force spent $2.6 billion to buy 50 transport planes that do not meet the military's requirements, preventing squadrons based in six states from being fully prepared for their missions in the Middle East and elsewhere, the office of the Defense Department's inspector general disclosed yesterday. POGO Alert - POGO Statement on C-130J Inspector General Audit. Pentagon's Inspector General audit says Air Force's new fleet of C-130J transport aircraft have so many deficiencies that they can't perform their mission. July 23, 2004.
|
|||
