How about looking into the "irregularities" on home soil. What about the multi-millions we pour into this company from our overstretched defence budget that prop up jobs and get 1*-4*s some senior jobs in the company (including some civil servants at DE&S)? When I think about the money we have paid this company "over and above" the market rate in order to save British jobs, only to see them make massive profits year on year - it is "criminal".
Here's a list of eqpt to show their pedigree:
Tornado F3 - delivered with a concrete nose and engines that surged.
Typhoon - overan about 7 years and delivered with interim capability and clearance - plus increased cost.
FRES - underachieving and overrunning.
Nimrod MRA4 - lost count how long it is overrunning (10yrs?) plus costs!
HERTi - tried making this work a couple of times now at significant cost to the taxpayer.
Mantis - Who knows! But I bet it will be more expensive compared to off the shelf solutions.
Well aren't they a pretty bunch of cost overuns, under achievement of original spec and late deliveries? The late deliveries and cost overuns are one of the main reasons we have seen our forces dwindle from 300,000 personnel in the early 90s to just 180,000 in recent years - our increasing equipment tariff is often quoted as the reason. So you've saved 30,000 jobs in Blackpool/Preston/Hull and lost 120,000 jobs in the Armed Forces - well done all involved!
Come on SFO and NAO get a wiggle on and get investigating! We need to get them to cut the cost of their equipment, get closer to delivery schedules and stop trying to please the share-holders and start looking after its customers!
Rant over
LJ