Posted on 12/11/2013 8:27:10 AM PST by robowombat
-- U.S. Senate and House negotiators are planning to provide as much as $90 million to keep the production line running at an Ohio tank manufacturing plant.
The money for the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center is included in the defense bill, which could get congressional approval as early as this week. It means Abrams tanks will continue to roll off the line at the nation's only tank manufacturing plant, in Lima (LY'-mah), about 80 miles south of Toledo.
The money for the tank plant will come against the wishes of the Obama administration, which for the past two years has asked Congress not to spend any money to refurbish the M1A1 Abrams battle tank.
Ohio senators Sherrod Brown and Rob Portman supported keeping the plant operating.
90 million is about 30 tanks....
from wikipedia
By 16 August 2013, details emerged on how the $181 million Congress had allocated for the Abrams would be spent: $114 million would upgrade 12 tanks, $26 million would buy 48 transmissions, and $41 million would buy 86 Block II second-generation forward-looking infrared sensors. The buy is to mitigate Abrams FLIR industrial base risks, and sustain development and production capability. Congress and General Dynamics had been criticized for redirecting money to keep production lines open. A report in July 2012 documented that the company and its employees gave campaign donations to lawmakers, and over 120 lawmakers sent a letter to Secretary of the Army John McHugh expressing their disappointment that the service had stated they didn’t intend to fund any tank upgrades until 2017. General Dynamics had asserted that a four-year shutdown would cost $1.1-$1.6 billion when the time came to restart the line.
Seriously, it is good to keep the facility open. Skilled workers, tools and dies along with templates are hard to replace once they are scattered to the wind.
The plant mostly does upgrade and refurbishing, not new vehicle assembly. Still, your sentiment is correct. It’s the only plant that can work on the Abrams to the level necessary to keep it a formidable weapon system.
My district, Jim Jordan represents the fourth district.
All I heard was a soft whine of the engine, then that 60 ton monster shot off like a dragster from the line.
An awesome machine.
There wil ALWAYS be a place for tanks the military....because if
we don’t have them the foe will, therefore America needs tanks....
Just as we need planes, choppers and other hardware.
The fact that O and his handlers have been pushing to close this
plant should be no surprise. This administration would shut down
most of the military except the part they thought was needed to
keep Americans under his thumb.
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