Naval Aviation: Changes in Naval Aviation Budgets Since A-12 Termination
Abstract
In the 1980s the Navy began a program that would replace its aging fleet of A-6 medium attack aircraft with a new aircraft-the A-12-that would incorporate stealth technology and could be deployed from an aircraft carrier. In January 1988 the Navy awarded a fixed-price incentive contract for full-scale development of the A-12 to the team of General Dynamics and McDonnell Douglas Corporations. The contract had a target price of $4.4 billion and a ceiling price of $4.8 billion. On January 7, 1991, the Navy terminated the A-12 contract for default due to difficulties the contractors had in executing the contract. As we reported in March 1991, expenditures on the contract, which amounted to $2.7 billion, had not exceeded the contract's $4.4 billion target price. However, we also reported in July 1991 that, at the time of termination, the Navy was projecting the contractors would overrun the contract's ceiling price of $4.8 billion and that the A-12's first flight would be delayed by over 2 years. When the contract was terminated, the Secretary of Defense acknowledged that the Navy still needed to develop a next-generation replacement for its A-6 strike aircraft.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 19, 1991
- Accession Number
- ADA243764
Entities
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office