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U.S. spent $86 million on plane never flown

Kevin Johnson, USA TODAY 6:20 p.m. EDT March 30,

WASHINGTON — The Drug Enforcement Administration and Pentagon spent a combined $86 million on a surveillance aircraft for planned operations in Afghanistan that never left the ground, a Justice Department review found.

Seven years after the aircraft was purchased to support the so-called Global Discovery Program, it now rests on jacks in a Delaware hangar and "has never flown in Afghanistan,'' Justice's inspector general concluded Wednesday in a 59-page report.

"The...aircraft, which was originally intended to be completed in December 2012, has missed every intended delivery date, is not yet complete and is no longer intended to fly in Afghanistan,'' Justice auditors found.

Since the DEA removed all aviation operations from Afghanistan last July, the aircraft is now being planned to support operations in the Caribbean, Central America and South America. The new promised delivery date is this June.

The inspector general called into question millions of dollars that were either determined to be unauthorized and unsupported for a project that was originally estimated to cost $22 million. The ATR 42-500, purchased in 2008, was intended to support counter-narcotics efforts in Afghanistan, and the Defense Department had agreed to modify the aircraft with "advanced'' surveillance equipment'' to operate in combat zones.

As of last February, the DEA had spent $10.1 million on the failed project, while DOD-related costs totaled $67.9 million and included funds to modify the aircraft and for the construction of a hangar at Kabul International Airport.

"The DOD considered scrapping aircraft (in 2014) because, while the DOD had already expended more than $65.9 million on the aircraft's modifications, an additional $6 million was required to repair damages observed during attempts to modify the aircraft,'' the report concluded. "Yet, at that time, the market value of the aircraft was only $6 million.''

In a written response, the DEA said that it had collaborated with the Defense Department on successful aircraft modification projects in the past, but because modification funding for Global Discovery was being provided largely by the Pentagon, the DEA was limited in its involvement in the overall modification process.

"Based upon that previous experience,'' DEA Deputy Chief Inspector Michael Stanfill wrote, "DEA had no indication that the Global Discovery modification would encounter significant delays and problems that ultimately occurred.''

In a statement Tuesday, the DEA said it "welcomes recommendations that make us better.''

"DEA agrees that it can should provide better oversight of its operational funding,'' the agency's statement read. "We are reviewing policies and procedures to ensure the limited resources allocated to DEA are utilized in the most responsible and effective way possible.''

The Justice inspector general has referred the findings to the DOD's inspector general for review.