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."
The C-130J can't drop heavy equipment. It can't be used to drop
troops. It can't operate in cold weather and is an unsuitable SAR
platform. So says the Pentagon.
The USAF, however, stands behind the aircraft, saying most of
the problems have been addressed. Many lawmakers on Capitol Hill
reportedly like the aircraft because they can buy them for the
National Guard troops back home. But Defense Secretary Don Rumsfeld
has promised to kill the C-130J as part of his plan to upgrade the
military.
"It's going to be a battle royale," Dov Zakheim, the Pentagon's
former comptroller and chief financial officer, told the Times. "In
other years, Congress went and put money back in the program in
spite of the Pentagon. So it shouldn't come as any surprise
Congress would not take these cuts sitting down."
The DoD's chief weapons tester,
Thomas Christie, said in January that the aircraft is "neither
operationally effective nor operationally suitable" and has "failed
to meet operational requirements," according to the Times.
One major problem appears to be engines that are simply too
powerful, according to a senior engineer at the Defense Contract
Management Agency in Marietta, GA. Ken Pendeleose said the
powerplants produce so much thrust that they can damage the props
on take-off, making the aircraft more prone to stalls.
That same problem, according to Pendeleose, makes it tough for
paratroopers to jump out of the aircraft without being blown back
into the fuselage (although that problem likely doesn't exist in
jumps through the rear cargo door).
But those issues aside, 29 Capitol Hill lawmakers have already
written President Bush, asking him to cancel the cancellation. The
C-130J's opponents in Congress, angry at the way the paperwork was
done (the aircraft was declared a commercial purchase, supposedly
clearing the way for a faster, less expensive purchase) and say the
aircraft simply doesn't measure up to Lockheed's promises. They
think the program should be cancelled and the bill sent to Lockheed
Martin headquarters.
The C-130J will be on trial for its life later this year. "There
will be tests this summer, and after that, the Air Force expects
the C-130J will be fully mission capable," Air Force spokesman Doug
Karas told the Times. "We've worked on fixing and updating."