Tab for trucks Pentagon doesn't need could top $100M

[Ichingcarpenter]

WASHINGTON — The Army and Marine Corps may have wasted more than $100 million returning vehicles from Afghanistan that they don't need over just a one-year period, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Tuesday.

The services could have saved the money by blowing up the trucks or turning them over to allies, the report says. Over a one-year period, the Army and Marines returned 1,000 vehicles to the United States that the service didn't need, at a cost of as much as $107,400 per vehicle.

The Pentagon has made some progress in reining in its costs, GAO notes, but not enough.

"However, due to ineffective internal controls, the Army and Marine Corps may be incurring unnecessary costs by returning equipment that potentially exceeds service needs or is not economical to return and repair," the report says.

"This report is a troubling reminder that the Department of Defense has more work do in managing taxpayer dollars," said Sen. Tom Carper, a Delaware Democrat and chairman of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee. "The Government Accountability Office underscores that the DOD can and should do a much better job in preventing unnecessary costs by taking some common sense steps in managing its surplus military vehicles. We simply cannot afford this type of waste and ineffectiveness."

The military's effort to return gear from Afghanistan is on time and budget, Mark Wright, a Pentagon spokesman, said in response to the GAO findings. The Pentagon expects to spend about $6 billion to retrieve gear from Afghanistan, Wright said.


http://www.armytimes.com/article/20141001/NEWS05/310010049

[Sherman A1]

1. Well,

I would rather see them shipped back than end up in the hands of those who might use them in ways not intended. As the article points out, we are now bombing some Huvees and MRAPs that were turned over the Iraqi military.

In a perfect world they never would have gone there from the get-go, but given that they are where they are, I think we can clean up our mess, bring them home and I would hope create a few jobs as they are placed into reserve, scrapped or used for parts for active service vehicles.