Congress: USAF under-reported C-130J costs

Confusion about the L-3/Alenia C-27J's price tag relative to the C-130J's sparked one of history's most memorable lines from a Congressional hearing earlier this year on military acquisition. Here's that famous exchange between Rep Neil Abercrombie and USAF acquisition head Sue Payton:

"REP. ABERCROMBIE: Ms. Payton, you are right on the edge of getting into the Blues Brothers.

MS. PAYTON: Sorry sir, I don't mean to be there. I --

REP. ABERCROMBIE: That's when -- when Jake says, Bill, but you lied to us about the band. They lied to me when I was in prison about the band. You haven't kept the band together. He goes, I never lied to you. I bullshitted you a little bit, but I never lied to you."

Six months later, Abercrombie's hunch proved right on the mark. The defense appropriations conference report approved by the House last week explains that the twin-engined C-27J costs much less than a four-engined C-130J after all. Here's the language:

"The report (H. Rept. 110-652) accompanying the House bill noted that, at the time of the report, the Air Force was reporting a unit cost for JCA of $60.7 million, and was reporting a unit cost for C-130J aircraft of $56.7 million.

After further discussion with the Air Force acquisition officials and clarification of terminology, we believe that a fairer, apples-to-apples comparison of such costs would raise the comparable average procurement unit cost for a C-130J to $84.2 million, in terms of fiscal year 2007 dollars."