WP: Army Scraps the Comanche Helicopter

[Cush]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A702-2004Feb23.html

The Army yesterday canceled development of the $39 billion Comanche helicopter program after 21 years of escalating costs, technological glitches and redesigns failed to produce a single operational aircraft.

The Comanche, once billed as a cornerstone of the military's high-tech transformation, had consumed $6.9 billion. The estimated cost of each aircraft had soared to $53 million from an original target of $8 million, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense.

[lcordero]

1. It's about damn time

My last MOS was supposed to migrate from working on kiowa warriors(another POS) to Comanches. The project should have been killed 10 years ago. Taxpayers paid through the nose for this one.

[saigon68]

5. Good Riddance

The problem is the evil beasts, who get over on the idea of rampant destruction, almost always have a "NEW" project that will "cost more" to "kill more".

[billbuckhead]

2. Better late than never, though Comanche had to be better than the Osprey

Don't be shocked if the Caryle Group gets at least a part of the inevitable new project.

[Thor_MN]

3. WTF!!!

"The Bush Administration has now killed the two biggest Army weapons programs it inherited from the Clinton administration," said Loren Thompson, who monitors aviation and other defense issues for the Lexington Institute think tank.

Somebody tell me if I am wrong, but I don't think that in 1983, when the Comanche project was initiated, Clinton could have had any affect on military programs. Someone needs to tell Loren (and maybe his bosses at that "Think Tank") that the Comanche was Ronnie Raygun's baby. Now if they would only sh!tcan his other baby the Star Wars boondoggle...

[dbt]

4. And wouldn't you just know that Poppy would profit from this?

The Carlyle groups which owns the majority stake in United Technologies filed to sell a huge amount of shares before the announcement of the cancellation.

(From another post by JMach1 in LBN.)

:argh:
dbt

[Capt_Nemo]

6. Just like the A-12 before and Missile Defense in the future

Or, "how to rob he taxpayers in 4 easy steps!"

This is how hi-tech industries are subsidized in the US under the
guise of military contracts (if they had to compete according to
free-marketeer's rules they would be the ulitmate proof of the
failure of their ideology):

Phase 1 - The government starts a pseudo-futuristic weapons program, with unrealistic
performance targets and whose mission requirements have a vague
conection (or not at all!) with the real defense needs of the US.

Phase 2 - Then the Aerospace Mega-Corps bid for the contract. One or two win
the contest but all others profit from being awarded contracts for
major sub-systems.

Phase 3 - The taxpayers get their money syphoned into the development
of the weapon. The industries produce a prototype (or not at all)
with part of the money, while the rest works as a subsidy to the
corporations' wider range of activities.

Phase 4 version 1 - The project is canceled for its purpose of supporting an unpofitable industry,
but vital for global geopolitical goals, has been acomplished.

Phase 4 version 2 - A reasonably performing system sees the light
of day behind schedule, and hugely overpriced. Goes into production
and taxpayers are screwed again.

Phase 4 version 3 - A ridiculously underperforming, absurdly overpriced system is deployed, but since
it is supposed to never work unless the US is going to get erased off
the face of the Earth there is no problem, 'cause the "sexy" death-toy is
there, and when everybody is nuked out of existence nobody is left
to question if the system did perform as advertised.

[UpInArms]

7. somehow I believe

that this article http://www.forbes.com/newswire/2004/01/07/rtr1201830.html is related to this thread

The Sikorsky-led team includes units of Northrop Grumman Corp. (nyse: NOC - news - people), Rockwell Collins Inc., L-3 Communications Holdings Inc., Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and the Carlyle Group, a private investment firm.

<snip>

The U.S. Navy formally launched the competition for a new "Marine One" helicopter last month. An initial contract, to be awarded this spring, is valued at $1.6 billion to cover design and initial purchases of the aircraft chosen to replace today's presidential fleet of aging Sikorsky VH-3D and VH-60N choppers.

It is a high-stakes competition, with the companies hoping that the initial order of 23 to 25 helicopters translates into multibillion-dollar long- term orders to supply 300 to 400 more to the U.S. Coast Guard, Air Force and other agencies.

The Navy wants helicopters that can provide better protection for the president in light of post-Sept. 11, 2001, terror threats, said Lt. Cmdr. Danny Hernandez, a spokesman.

...more...

[ZenLefty]

8. Duplicate

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=380394