[font=Verdana]Do you know any of your countries Military stuff ups ?[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]Like the B1 bomber for instance ?[/font]
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[font=Verdana]Here is one of [/font][font=Verdana]Australia[/font][font=Verdana]’s (current)[/font]
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[font=Verdana]Sea-sprite Helicopter[/font]
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[font=Verdana]We were going to develop a joint project with [/font][font=Verdana]Malaysia[/font][font=Verdana] for a small frigate type ship. [/font][font=Verdana]This ship was to be capable of carrying a helicopter.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]( God only knows why, but rather than make the ship a little bigger to facilitate Seahawks which we already own. They were to use the Sea-sprite helicopter. )[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]Our government went ahead and signed contracts for 11 of these.[/font]
[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]They bough second hand airframes rather than have them build new ones because they though it would be cheaper.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]The frames we bought were used during [/font][font=Verdana]Vietnam[/font][font=Verdana], they are that old.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]Here is where it gets stinky.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]The ship was canceled… It’s never going to be built; now we have bought 11 helicopters, none of which are operational.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]It has now been found that the airframes are 80% rubbish, so they have to have them almost made from scratch.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]It has now been found, that the Americans, which retired theirs years ago have been offering their moth balled ones for “free” for years.[/font]
[font=Verdana]We have now “paid” for two of these; they are still sitting in the desert.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]So where are we at ?[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]We have now spent 1 Billion dollars on 11 helicopters that we have no use for.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]We are still trying to build them.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]One politician has been looking into this fiasco for 4 years.[/font]
[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]Like it is that hard to find out who signed the contracts and hang the incompetent fools.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]Now if you don’t find this funny enough….[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]New Zealand[/font][font=Verdana] bought 9 of these helicopters a couple of years ago for $6 million and they are all operational.[/font]
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[font=Verdana][/font][font=Verdana]We have spent $1 Billion and have 11 non-operational…. Not that it does us any good to have them operational as we have no ships for them anyway.[/font]
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[font=Verdana](yes we have ships they could be used on, but we already have new Seahawks on those)[/font]
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[font=Verdana]This sort of stuff makes me sick… And no one will ever lose their jobs over it. ;( [/font]
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