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 March 27, 2003 F/A-22 Gets Green Light Despite Crippling Avionics and Cost Overruns |
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 For Immediate Release
Contact: Beth Daley beth@pogo.org (202) 347-1122
According to POGO sources, the Pentagon's Defense Acquisition Board has approved production of additional F/A-22s but has postponed addressing the on-going avionics problems plaguing the system. The decision echoes another disastrous procurement story. On the B-1 bomber, crippling avionics problems that were not fixed before production eventually made the bomber unusable (see POGO's Fighting with Failures Fact Sheet on the B-1 Bomber ). "The eyes and ears of the plane do not work yet. It is irresponsible to spend billions on a plane that may never work. For every single pie in the sky F/A-22 the Pentagon can buy four tried and true F-16s," said Danielle Brian, Executive Director of POGO. The General Accounting Office has issued two reports in recent weeks documenting uncontrolled cost overruns and technical difficulties in the program (see March 13th POGO Alert "GAO Report Says F-22 Costs Soaring Out of Control" and March 17th GAO report "Tactical Aircraft: DOD Should Reconsider Decision to Increase F/A-22 Production Rates While Development Risks Continue" ). In its most recent report, the GAO recommended that the Secretary of Defense "reconsider the decision to increase the annual production rate of the F/A-22" in order to "minimize the risks of producing large quantities of aircraft that may require costly modifications." According to the GAO, increasing the F/A-22 production rate "is a high-risk strategy that could serve to further increase production costs." POGO investigates, exposes, and seeks to remedy systemic abuses of power, mismanagement, and subservience by the federal government to powerful special interests. Founded in 1981, POGO is a politically independent, nonprofit watchdog that strives to promote a government that is accountable to the citizenry. # # # #
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