Navy Scolded for $10-Million Boat Failure

Pentagon auditors scolded the Navy Thursday for wasting $10 million on the design and production of commando warfare patrol boats, calling the project “the anatomy of a failure.”

In an audit conducted between January and August, 1986, the Pentagon’s inspector general said his staff found that the Navy ineffectively managed the solicitation, competition and contract administration for the boats. The action resulted in only partial construction of one craft for which there were no operational requirements.

“If completed as currently designed, the craft will not be able to perform the requirements established in the contract or desired by the user (the Navy),” the 47-page audit report said.

The report included a claim that an admiral’s signature was forged on a document that was needed for the project to go forward. The reported forgery is under investigation by the Naval Investigative Service, according to records.

Navy plans in August, 1986, called for buying 19 of the 95-foot patrol boats for $270 million. The contractor, RMI of National City, Calif., was paid more than $10.7 million for the first boat, which was to have been delivered in April, 1986.