via ABC News.
The military's watchdog has found hundreds of flaws in the way giant defense contractors produced the F-35 fighter jet – flaws that made what was already the most expensive weapons system in history even more costly to American taxpayers and flaws that should have been caught by the program's military overseers.A few things.
The Department of Defense Inspector General released a 126-page report today describing 719 "issues" it found with the jet's primary manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, and five other major contractors as they assembled planes for the estimated nearly $400 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program. It also listed failures of the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO), the military-led organization in charge of putting the planes in the air for three services in the American military, for not ensuring "Lockheed Martin and its subcontractors were applying rigor to design, manufacturing, and quality assurance" among other things. Both Lockheed Martin and the JPO said the report was old news and that the issues have been mostly addressed.
Flaws found on the production line, according to the DOD IG, included "uncontrolled or unapproved" design changes in production planning, contractor personnel who were not following written manufacturing and assembly process instructions, inadequate calibration management systems that could hinder testing and employees with expired certifications for critical tasks like ejection seat installation or "explosives care."
* When you walk onto a truck lot and fall in love with that big F-250 4x4 and the salesman sees it, you can bet that any bargain you might have had is gone...unless you're willing to walk away.
* Design changes that weren't approved? Expired certifications?
Lockheed Martin is fleecing the public. This is beyond criminal...this is insanity on steroids. Not only is this airplane dragging the Marine Corps budget into an alley and raping it, but its gonna end up killing it too.
There is only one solution to the problems with this program... take off and nuke it from orbit. Its the only way to be sure....
An Update from Don.
**"Congress notified that first F-35 jets have cost overruns of $771M. "**See, what they do is award a lo-ball contract, crow about the low contract unit cost (forgetting to tell us it's the airframe only with no GFE engine), then later when nobody's looking reach down into the 'contingency fund' to add the necessary dollars the glutinous F35 really needs.
Here it is again in yesterday's news from the Lockheed/Pentagon/media cabal:"The arrangement calls for 23 F-35As, the Air Force’s version of the plane that takes off in a conventional manner, at $103 million apiece; 6 F-35Bs, the Marine Corps’ variant that can fly like a plane and lands like a helicopter, at $109 million a piece; and 7 F-35Cs, the Navy’s version designed to take off from aircraft carriers, at $120 million apiece."
Actual costs from the FY2014 budget request:--F-35A $176m, F-35B $237m, F-35C $236mhttp://comptroller.defense.gov/defbudget/fy2014/ amendment/fy2014_p1a.pdf
Read it from the beginning:
ReplyDeletehttp://nation.time.com/2013/06/03/the-new-era-of-good-f-35-feelings/
the contractor bamboozled the Pentagon into loosening up DoD design requirements so they could ironically deliver a less expensive product. Except the substandard parts are so bad, they need to be retrofitted with better parts. So if they say they this is going to get cheaper in delivery costs, at first they might, but the maintenance and 'upgrades' this fucker will be a goldmine for the contractor. It is rotten to the core.
One subject they will never mention is that some nonconforming F-35 parts are of -- you guessed it -- Chinese origin.
DeleteFrank Kendall, testifying to the US senate on June 19, 2013:
In the fall of 2012, the F-35 Program Office was alerted to a case where non-compliant specialty metals were used in the manufacturing of the F-35 Radar. The metals in question are in small high performance magnets that are embedded in the lowest levels of the F-35 supply chain. . . According to the [House] committee, the Department of Defense (DoD) issued waivers that allowed distributor-fabricators to introduce noncompliant high-performance magnets into the F-35 supply chain despite the law and Congress’s direction to facilitate competition and guarantee a secure supply chain.
But you'll never see the word "China," --except in the headline of this article.
http://www.magneticsmagazine.com/main/articles/chinas-door-into-us-weapon-systems-magnets/
Didn't we use to throw profiteers in prison? Or fine them? Or something?!
ReplyDeleteThey cannot profiteer, profits are capped by federal law. If any defense contractor sells you something for $100 it has to cost them $87, If it actually cost $80, they do not have to refund $5 they have to refund $8. Buy federal law they can only make 15%. Go find a retailer who makes "only" 15% on the products they sell. This was why Boeing has to refund $13 million for "overcharging" on parts. Some of the cost went down after the contract was signed.
Delete"Design changes that weren't approved?" If they has really found unapproved design changes those aircraft would be grounded. Anyone with half a brain and a clue about flight certifications requirements knows that. If you read the entire sentence and comprehend "design changes in production planning". Those are changes to Lockheed's paperwork system not the aircraft.
climb down off your horse. this airplane has been in cost over runs pretty much since birth. if that's not profiteering then what is? only recently has the Pentagon started withholding money and only then did LM get the message.
DeleteEVEN WITH ALL THAT THE STOCK HAS BEEN A BUY, THEY'VE BEEN PAYING STOCKHOLDERS A DIVIDEND THAT IS THE ENVY OF THE MARKET AND YOU'RE SAYING SOMEONE IS CRAZY?
i don't think so. these bastards are getting off like scalded dogs. they're running away and enjoying the profits...and by the way this program is setup they're gonna be the biggest welfare case in the US...all the while draining the military and keeping us from modernizing anything that doesn't say F-35 on the side.
That's how Harry Truman earned his political chops.
Deletewiki:
The Truman Committee, formally known as the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program, was a United States Congressional investigative body headed by Senator Harry S. Truman. The bipartisan special committee was formed in March 1941 to find and correct problems in US war production—problems with waste, inefficiency and war profiteering. The Truman Committee proved to be one of the most successful investigative efforts ever mounted by the US government. . .
But they don't make Harry Trumans any longer.
**"Congress notified that first F-35 jets have cost overruns of $771M. "**
ReplyDeleteSee, what they do is award a lo-ball contract, crow about the low contract unit cost (forgetting to tell us it's the airframe only with no GFE engine), then later when nobody's looking reach down into the 'contingency fund' to add the necessary dollars the glutinous F35 really needs.
Here it is again in yesterday's news from the Lockheed/Pentagon/media cabal:
"The arrangement calls for 23 F-35As, the Air Force’s version of the plane that takes off in a conventional manner, at $103 million apiece; 6 F-35Bs, the Marine Corps’ variant that can fly like a plane and lands like a helicopter, at $109 million a piece; and 7 F-35Cs, the Navy’s version designed to take off from aircraft carriers, at $120 million apiece."
Actual costs from the FY2014 budget request:
--F-35A $176m, F-35B $237m, F-35C $236m
http://comptroller.defense.gov/defbudget/fy2014/amendment/fy2014_p1a.pdf
Playing with numbers again:
ReplyDeleteThe Marine Corps has about six percent of the total services budget in 2014, but its F-35's constitute about twenty-one percent of the total F-35 buy expenditure.
FY2014 budget request
Navy $155.8 36% of services budgets
Air Force $144.4 34%
Army $129.7 30%
total services $429.9
breaking out Marines from Navy:
Marines $28 6% of services budgets
Navy (less Marines) $128 30%
F-35 total program (using FY 2014 unit costs)
air force 1,753 X 176 = $308B 66%
navy 260 X 236 = $61B 13%
Marines 420 X 236 = $99 21%
total $468B
% F35 program / % services budget
Marines 21 / 6
Navy (less Marines) 13 / 30
Air Force 66 / 34
I assume that Navy makes Marines pay for their aircraft? In any case,
--the Navy/Marine buy keeps the unit cost from being even higher.
--the Navy/Marine F-35 buy, it appears, may now exceed the foreign buy -- 680 vs. what, 500 maybe? (The folks in the second category have a choice.)
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeletefrom AviationIntel:
ReplyDeleteRUSSIAN ROULETTE DoD STYLE: RETIRE ANYTHING TO PROTECT THE F-35 “PROGRAM”
I have gotten a ton of email with various articles attached talking about how plans are in the works to retire a whole slew of “legacy” (ie front line) aircraft types in a desperate attempt to protect the most flawed weapons procurement concept in modern history- the F-35 Lightning. . . .Please speak out against this insanity. This strategy will break our air combat capability and is one way ticket to parity with potential foes, not dominance. The future is unmanned, especially for low observable deep strike and kicking down the enemy’s door, the exact mission requirements that makes the F-35 so expensive and inefficient. The idea that in thirty years the F-35 will be relevant is laughable, although the A-10 very well could be.
http://aviationintel.com/2013/10/01/russian-roulette-dod-style-retire-anything-to-protect-the-f-35-program/
The Department of Defense Inspector General released a 126-page report today describing 719 "issues" it found with the jet's primary manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, and five other major contractors.
ReplyDelete