"Darmammu, I'm here to negotiate!"
Posted on 12/07/2016 9:33:48 AM PST by GonzoII
Hours after Donald Trump promised to kill the Air Force One procurement program, Boeing Chief Executive Dennis A. Muilenburg spoke with the president-elect on Tuesday, promising to work with the new administration and to keep the costs of the program down, according to a person with knowledge of the matter...
(Excerpt) Read more at chicagotribune.com ...
If I was C-I-C a B-1 or B-2 would be my AF-1.
It’s an ongoing theme with regards to many military programs. I experienced it first hand during my first 5 years working for a defense contractor after I graduated from university. Personally, I thought I would be making a contribution to my country’s armed forces through my work. But in those 5 years, nothing I worked on ever made it to the soldier. It was either cancelled or shelved. Most of these programs are treated like an old-fashioned ‘water pump’. Get $$$$ from government for program, spend it all, ooops we need more money, pump that handle again for more $$$$.
I think a lot of the cost is claimed to be R&D toward new systems, but still, does seem like an extreme case....
Of course he did since Boeing is stuck with the costs if it is canceled!!!
My late father was an aeronautical engineer who worked on a variety of important programs across several different major defense contractors in his career. He said while contractor waste is a problem, a large proportion of cost issues had to do with bad contracting management by the US govt, numerous changes in specs over time, design by committee, etc.
Procurement reform is a must, and I expect PEOTUS Donald J. Trump will find the right person to head up that process. Or General Mattis perhaps is already the right person (as head of DoD) who will know who to put in charge of R&D, procurement, etc. because he will know so well what does and does not contribute to the proper support of the fighting Marines, soldiers, sailors, and airmen.
I have no problem with this at all. Republicans continually get walked on and forced to cave in to people who rip them apart and talk bad of them. Trump is different. I think it is a positive message like when he said a few months ago that he did not like the ATT/Time Warner merger or when he said Comcast may be a monopoly. These are all democratic strongholds (at least at CEO level). If you are running one of those companies now and you hear Major Garrett and remember what Trump said about your company...
well how long will it be before you pick up the phone and call Trump and be friendly and supportive?
By the way, has any other President (elect, sitting) been so open to taking calls? I feel like I should just give him a call to chat. Unreal how he has so much time and yet has the busiest schedule of anyone on the planet.
Actually, all-in the B2 cost $2.1B in 1997 dollars.
Add in inflation and the fact that the development and procurement costs were spread over 21 planes instead of 2 and it isn't even close.
Not even close to being bored. Keep winning.
Designed and manufactured by Northrop, later Northrop Grumman, the cost of each aircraft averaged US$737 million (in 1997 dollars). Total procurement costs averaged $929 million per aircraft, which includes spare parts, equipment, retrofitting, and software support.
Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_Grumman_B-2_Spirit
Designed and manufactured by Northrop, later Northrop Grumman, the cost of each aircraft averaged US$737 million (in 1997 dollars). Total procurement costs averaged $929 million per aircraft, which includes spare parts, equipment, retrofitting, and software support.
You stopped reading too soon. The source you quoted also says:
"The total program cost including development, engineering and testing, averaged $2.1 billion per aircraft in 1997."
From what I've read the $4B quoted for the AF1 program is total program cost.
“Trump, unlike any of our recent Presidents, is a results, not a poltical process guy. His focus is getting things done, not doing them in a the “proper” way. This is going to be amazing, and nerve racking, Presidency.”
YES!!!
Politicians believe in the Grand Gesture, which looks good on the news shows but actually accomplishes little or makes things worse.
Trump believes in Grand Results, which means highest quality possible, on time and under budget.
The next four years are going to be a heart in our throats roller coaster ride.
No more million dollar toilets just because we need a stronger military!
I can’t wait to see the actual inauguration...Barry, Bozo Biden, and Mooch watching as Trump is sworn in.
How much cooler would it be for the President to fly in a SST instead of a 747....
If Trump wants to get Boeing moving, he should rent an Airbus 380 for a couple of years. :)
But in those 5 years, nothing I worked on ever made it to the soldier. It was either cancelled or shelved. Most of these programs are treated like an old-fashioned ‘water pump’. Get $$$$ from government for program, spend it all, ooops we need more money, pump that handle again for more $$$$.
___________________
I agree with you, One of the many problems I see is that the Defense people always want the ‘platform’ to do EVERYTHING imaginable including on occasion the un-imaginable. Where a ‘purpose built’ plane, tank, ship or personal weapon might be built for a reasonable cost and even excel in that specific role the military brass always seem to want to keep adding in ‘bells and whistles’. And let me tell you every single ‘new’ item added on to a program increases the costs, sometime exponentially.
Where as if they would just stop tinkering and adding on in the hopes of producing a ‘do everything’ platform the contractors could and would produce under budget nearly every-time.
Heh, here’s a story for you, when I started programming for the Air Force as a contractor back in the early 80’s. I could make and document small code changes usually in less than a day. Testing and certifying for operational use might take a couple of days longer.
When I retired in 2009 a SINGLE line change to a program’s code would take at least six month’s and nearly a half a million dollars in overhead expenses before it was declared ready for operational use.
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