From The Associated Press, 7/11/07
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/07/11/ap3904443.html
Pentagon Criticized for Armor Contracts
By RICHARD LARDNERandANNE FLAHERTY
The Defense Department put U.S. troops in Iraq at risk by awarding
contracts for badly needed armored vehicles to companies that failed
to deliver them on schedule, according to a review by the Pentagon's
inspector general.
The June 27 report, obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press,
examined 15 contracts worth $2.2 billion dollars awarded since 2000 to
Force Protection, Inc., and Armor Holdings, Inc.
The auditors found several contracts issued by the Marine Corps on a
sole-source basis to Force Protection even though it knew there were
other manufacturers that might have supplied the vehicles in a more
timely fashion.
The Marine Corps determined that Force Protection of Ladson, S.C., was
the only supplier that could meet the urgent delivery schedule for the
vehicles.
The inspector general's report, however, concludes otherwise.
It says the company "did not perform as a responsible contractor and
repeatedly failed to meet contractual delivery schedules for getting
the vehicles the theater."
The report also criticizes the Army's decision to award a contract for
armor kits to Simula Aerospace and Defense Group, a subsidiary of
Armor Holdings of Jacksonville, Fla.
Simula did not meet the government's definition of a "responsible
prospective contractor," according to the report, and it lacked the
mechanisms necessary to ensure proper delivery of the kits, which were
needed to make Humvees less vulnerable to roadside bombs.
The Army received kits "with missing and unusable components, which
increased the kit installation time and required additional
reinspection of kits," it said.
Overall, the problems "resulted in increased risk to the lives of
soldiers," the report states.
There was no immediate comment by the contractors.
The review was requested by Rep. Louise Slaughter in April 2006, after
she learned the Pentagon was relying on a just a few small companies
to supply armored vehicles to troops in Iraq.
With improvised explosive devices accounting for the majority of
combat deaths and injuries, Slaughter said that strategy needed to be
examined.
"It's been business as usual," Slaughter, D-N.Y., said Wednesday after
reviewing the report.
"The lives of our soldiers took a back seat to who got the contracts."
Slaughter said the report raises "more questions than answers" and she
wants to know if the awards were the result of "influence peddling or
insider connections."
______________________________________________
Support our troops, eh?
Harry
.
|
