GAO Says Weight And Costs Keep Rising

Pentagon and Navy officials are projecting Lockheed Martin will overspend on its development contract for a new presidential helicopter by at least 34 percent.

Lockheed Martin won the $1.79 billion contract in January 2005. According to Navy and the Defense Contract Management Agency, the costs for system design and construction of initial helicopters needed by October 2009 and more capable choppers for 2015 are estimated to total at least $2.4 billion.

According to the Washington Post, officials have repeatedly said the VH-71 aircraft is on a fast track schedule -- faster than the usual timetable for a major defense program by a good three years. The VH-71 will replace helicopters currently used for executive branch travel, all of which are at least 40 years old.

Part of the reason for the increased cost is from delays caused by disagreements between the Bethesda defense contractor and the Navy over helicopter capabilities, according to officials.

"Typically Defense Department programs have aggressive schedules, but the presidential helicopter is even more aggressive than we are used to seeing," Paul Francis, director of acquisition and sourcing management for the Government Accountability Office, said.

From the beginning, the Navy and Lockheed Martin "didn't seem to be on the same page in terms of what the requirements were and what exactly Lockheed was required to deliver," Francis said. "What we are seeing is that they can't deliver the aircraft with those capabilities in that amount of time at those costs."

As a result, Francis said, weight, as well as cost, keeps rising.

The aircraft has grown by 1,200 pounds over the 30,350-pound design weight, according to the GAO. The $6.1 billion program envisions buying 20 helicopters.

The Navy program office, in an unclassified quarterly report, stated, "Performance risks are a direct result of continuing weight growth since contract award." The fear is the chopper will not meet the required weight and airspeed goals.

Lockheed Martin is making an entirely new helicopter for the presidential project, based on a model from the AgustaWestland unit of Finmeccanica in Italy.

FMI: www.lockheedmartin.com, www.navy.mil, www.dcma.mil