NYT/Reuters: US Auditors Fault Pentagon on Bang for Buck

[DeepModem Mom]

US Auditors Fault Pentagon on Bang for Buck
By REUTERS
Published: March 31, 2006

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The projected cost of major U.S. weapons has doubled under President George W. Bush to nearly $1.4 trillion, but the Pentagon is not getting enough bang for its buck, congressional investigators said in a report on Friday.

In the fourth annual assessment of its kind, the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress's audit and investigative arm, found ``no appreciable improvement'' in how warplanes, ships and other arms are bought.

"Rather, programs are experiencing recurring problems with cost overruns, missed deadlines and performance shortfalls," GAO said in a review of 52 projects.

The cost of developing a weapons system often tops estimates by 30 to 40 percent, it said.

Among things highlighted as contributing to cost increases were the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, under development by Lockheed Martin Corp., and the Army's centerpiece Future Combat Systems, overseen by Boeing Co....

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/washington/politics-arms-pentagon-report.html

[UpInArms]

1. U.S. auditors fault Pentagon on bang for buck

http://today.reuters.com/misc/PrinterFriendlyPopup.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=uri:2006-04-01T023659Z_01_N31171886_RTRIDST_0_ARMS-PENTAGON-REPORT-UPDATE-1.XML

WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - The projected cost of major U.S. weapons has doubled under President George W. Bush to nearly $1.4 trillion, but the Pentagon is not getting enough bang for its buck, congressional investigators said in a report on Friday.

In the fourth annual assessment of its kind, the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress's audit and investigative arm, found "no appreciable improvement" in how warplanes, ships and other arms are bought.

"Rather, programs are experiencing recurring problems with cost overruns, missed deadlines and performance shortfalls," GAO said in a review of 52 projects.

<snip>

Overall, the Defense Department doubled planned investments in new weapons systems over the past five years from $700 billion in 2001, when President Bush took office, to $1.4 trillion, the 141-page report said.

"This huge increase has not been accompanied by more stability, better outcomes or more buying power for the acquisition dollar," Comptroller General David Walker, the GAO director, said in a cover letter to lawmakers.

...more...

[bemildred]

2. This has to be some sort of joke.

The pentagon is in the business of pissing money away. They never saw a deadline they could not ignore.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

3. ...nor a faulty weapons program that needed building.

Beyond the basic military hardware, the rest is mostly a ponzi scheme; with John/Jane Q. Public at the base of the pyramid.