Some Defense program costs up as much as 323 percent (no word on healthcare...)

[The Straight Story]

Some Defense program costs up as much as 323 percent, report finds
By Bob Brewin 04/01/08

Key Defense Department electronics, satellite and communications programs have experienced significant schedule delays and cost overruns as high 323 percent, the Government Accountability Office detailed in its annual report to Congress on 72 major weapon systems programs released on Monday.

The cost to modernize the avionics system for the C-130 aircraft -- the backbone of the Defense tactical airlift fleet -- managed by Boeing Co. zoomed 323 percent from the original contract price of $484.6 million to just over $2 billion in constant dollars, according to the report. The cost of another Boeing-managed project, the Joint tactical system ground mobile radio has jumped 310 percent from an original estimate of $235.5 million to $966.3 million in constant dollars, GAO reported.

The National Polar-Orbiting Environmental Satellite System program has experienced a 74 percent increase from $2.9 billion to $5.1 billion, GAO said. NPOESS is a joint project of Defense and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In January, NOAA Administrator Conrad Lautenbacher blasted program contractors Northrop Grumman Corp. and Raytheon Co. for delays in developing a key weather observation instrument.

The final cost of Lockheed Martin Corp.’s Advanced Extremely High-Frequency Satellite program, designed to provide secure, jam-resistant communications to strategic and tactical forces, increased 46 percent from an estimated $2.9 billion to $4.1 billion, GAO said.

The spiraling growth of software code needed to operate major systems contributed to cost overruns and schedule delays, according to GAO, with roughly half the programs that provided software data experiencing at least a 25 percent growth.

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080401_8029.php

Rolling, rolling, rolling, keep them prices rolling... up.......