A planned U.S. Defense Department initiative would bolster efforts to
prevent armed forces hardware from incorporating off-brand components
from China, the Washington Times reported on Tuesday (see GSN, Nov. 10, 2011; Kristina Wong, Washington Times, May 23).
The defense contractor Honeywell in September 2010 turned up indications that memory electronics acquired for the U.S. Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense program had been "used and refurbished," the Senate Armed Services Committee said in a report issued on Monday.
"By the time the problem was discovered, suspect counterfeit devices had already been installed and delivered in 50 THAAD mission computers," and a system trial launch of the ballistic missile defense system had included one of the control units, the report states.
Elimination of the problematic parts as of last October had required $2.6 million in expenditures by Honeywell and chief THAAD contractor Lockheed Martin, according to the panel, which last year said hardware for the system and other U.S. defense technologies could include illicit Chinese components
"If the devices had failed, the THAAD missile itself would likely have failed," Senate investigators quoted the Missile Defense Agency as saying (U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee report, May 21).
Defense Department spokesman George Little on Tuesday said the Pentagon is "working very hard to try to sort this issue out, and take steps to further strengthen our supply chain." In a related move, the department in March finalized instructions aimed at laying the groundwork for a formal initiative to target illicit defense components.
Bolstering transparency mandates for companies hired by the government is the goal of a collaborative effort by the White House and Pentagon, he added.
Though the department has learned of no fatalities or significant harm resulting from illicit system components, “that doesn’t mean we should stop addressing the issue,” Little said.
http://www.nti.org/gsn/
The defense contractor Honeywell in September 2010 turned up indications that memory electronics acquired for the U.S. Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense program had been "used and refurbished," the Senate Armed Services Committee said in a report issued on Monday.
"By the time the problem was discovered, suspect counterfeit devices had already been installed and delivered in 50 THAAD mission computers," and a system trial launch of the ballistic missile defense system had included one of the control units, the report states.
Elimination of the problematic parts as of last October had required $2.6 million in expenditures by Honeywell and chief THAAD contractor Lockheed Martin, according to the panel, which last year said hardware for the system and other U.S. defense technologies could include illicit Chinese components
"If the devices had failed, the THAAD missile itself would likely have failed," Senate investigators quoted the Missile Defense Agency as saying (U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee report, May 21).
Defense Department spokesman George Little on Tuesday said the Pentagon is "working very hard to try to sort this issue out, and take steps to further strengthen our supply chain." In a related move, the department in March finalized instructions aimed at laying the groundwork for a formal initiative to target illicit defense components.
Bolstering transparency mandates for companies hired by the government is the goal of a collaborative effort by the White House and Pentagon, he added.
Though the department has learned of no fatalities or significant harm resulting from illicit system components, “that doesn’t mean we should stop addressing the issue,” Little said.
http://www.nti.org/gsn/
