Sixteen Apparently Airworthy G222 Aircraft Sold To Afghan Construction Company For Six Cents Per Pound

The Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction has sent a letter to the Secretary of the Air Force questioning the scrapping of 16 apparently airworthy G222 aircraft for six cents per pound.

In the letter to SecAF Deborah L. James dated October 3, Special Inspector General John Sopko said "During a trip to Afghanistan, I observed sixteen of the twenty planes in the G222 fleet parked unused on a tarmac at Kabul International Airport. I was informed that the other four planes are at Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

"It has come to my attention that the sixteen G222s at Kabul were recently towed to the far side of the airport and scrapped by the Defense Logistics Agency. I was also informed that an Afghan construction company paid approximately 6 cents a pound for the scrapped planes, which came to a total of $32,000.

"I am concerned that the officials responsible for planning and executing the scrapping of the planes may not have considered other possible alternatives in order to salvage taxpayer dollars."

The 20 aircraft had been purchased for $486 million, but it was later determined that they could not meet the operational requirements for the theater. The G222 program reportedly ended in March 2013 after experiencing continuous and severe operational difficulties, including a lack of spare parts.

Sopko has asked Secretary James for information about the sale and subsequent scrapping of the aircraft, including an explanation of whether any alternatives were considered and pursued, such as flying the aircraft out of Afghanistan and sold in the U.S. or Europe.

(Image from file)

FMI: Sopko Letter