SECDEF Vows To Kill It, But Congress Keeps Sending Money
Consider, for a moment, the Lockheed C-130J Hercules -- the
latest incarnation of an aircraft considered one of the military's
heartiest workhorses. If the C-130J were a wine, it would be off
the list at most restaurants, according to the Pentagon. It can't
fly the mission for which it was designed. It has design problems
that are so severe, an inspector general's report said the problems
were so bad that, left uncorrected, could "cause death, severe
injury or illness, major loss of equipment or systems." The report,
quoted by the New York Times, concluded, "Lockheed Martin has been
unable to design, develop or produce a C-130J aircraft that meets
contract specifications in the eight years since production
began."