US Sold $486 Million Worth Of Airplanes For $32,000 In Scrap Metal

According to reports, the US Department of Defense broke down $486 million worth of G222 airplanes and sold it as scrap metal to a construction company in Afghanistan for $32,000. From The Daily Caller:

That poor return on investment is documented in two letters sent by John Sopko, the Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction, to Defense Department officials, including Sec. Chuck Hagel and Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James.

The twenty G222 planes, which were manufactured in Italy and are used to transport equipment and troops, were not put to use in the Afghan theatre because they “could not meet operational requirements,” Sopko reported.

Purchased in 2008, the planes were “grounded” in May 2013 “after sustained, serious performance, maintenance, and spare parts problems.”

Instead of finding another use for them, sixteen of the airplanes were transported to a remote corner of the Kabul airport and sold by the Defense Logistics Agency for scrap at a price of six cents per pound.

That worked out to $32,000 worth of metal, which was purchased by an Afghan construction company.