A lot of contractors are robbing the US blind with over priced projects. There was also a training center for the Marines built in Afghanistan despite the Marines saying they didn't want it. They never used it once and the place was torn down. Another facility was built so poorly it just melted when it rained. Then there were the millions the US spent on helicopters for the Afghan military that were scrapped because the Afghans couldn't get any qualified pilots or mechanics and they deteriorated too much sitting out in the Afghan winters.
Going back a ways you also find $300 screwdrivers and $600 toilet seats.
I had a friend who had worked in a USN cal lab at Whidbey Island NAS. There were some gaskets that cost something like $100 a piece but they had to be replaced frequently. They never had enough and equipment was always stacked up waiting for gaskets. One day one of the techs was in the local hardware store and found the exact same gaskets at 20 for $0.15. Whenever officers came through trying to get their equipment back, they would show them the gaskets from the hardware store and tell them they were identical but couldn't be used because they weren't certified mil spec.
Finally the district admiral came through wanting to know why most of his planes were grounded. About a month later they got special permission to use the hardware store gaskets.
I suspect this is just another case of a contractor ripping off the military.
