Equipment worth billions of dollars. US Army has serious problem
3:36 PM EDT, October 19, 2023
Parts of military vehicles worth $1.3 billion were stored outside or in other risky ways - we read on the DefenseOne portal. This is more than half of the equipment that is crucial for keeping the army in the proper technical condition.
According to a report referred to by DefenseOne, in July 2022, the United States Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) stored 2.17 million parts and components for repairing ground combat systems. Among them are engines and gearboxes for tanks and armored vehicles. The total value of all components is 3.8 billion dollars.
As it turns out, as much as 67 percent of all storage states worth 1.3 billion dollars were stored inappropriately, that is, in a way that showed "critical oversights, according to the guidelines for storage" defined by US regulations. For the local army, this is a big problem because improper storage can lead to components being damaged and requiring repair before use.
Important components for the army can be destroyed by improper storage
In the US, the issue with equipment storage is not just about how critical machine components are stored. Even during the Army Association's October conference, Gabe Camarillo, the Undersecretary of the Army, claimed that the military has so much equipment that it's unclear where it is being stored.
Precious components and parts stored outside, however, present a problem that can result in serious malfunctions. Their presence can in turn determine difficulties with servicing important army vehicles. DefenceOne reporter Sam Skove points out that "storage errors cause degradation or increase the risk of degradation, leading to potentially costly efforts to restore or purchase new material".
Among the improperly stored components by DLA, 80 gas turbine engines, 278 gearboxes, and 117,535 tank tracks were identified. The value of these components is estimated at 183 million dollars.
During the inspection of US Army inventory, inspectors reported to have found "a lot of water and oil at the bottom of many containers", exposing many parts to faster deterioration. According to the inspectors, some DLA employees were not properly instructed on how to store key components for the US Army vehicles.
