Missile Procurement:
AMRAAM Cost Growth and Schedule Delays
NSIAD-87-78: Published: Mar 10, 1987. Publicly Released: Apr 21, 1987.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
In response to a congressional request, GAO developed a historical case study of the Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) Program, focusing on its requirements determination, contracting strategy, testing, and program management to determine why cost overruns and schedule delays occurred.
GAO found that underestimates of risk, schedule, and costs by the Air Force and contractor were the primary causes of the AMRAAM cost increases. Some of the factors that contributed to the underestimates or added to development time and costs included: (1) competition for program funding and pressure to justify the program over other programs; (2) contractor competition for the missile design and development contracts; and (3) frequent program manager turnover. GAO noted that the contractor: (1) did not meet all of the program's design and performance requirements due to technological, time, and cost limitations; (2) absorbed $255 million in cost overruns because the procurement was under a competitive fixed-price rather than a cost-reimbursement contract; and (3) stated that future price proposals would probably be more conservative and reflect the cost risks of system development. GAO is currently reviewing the adequacy and realism of AMRAAM flight tests prior to production decisions.
Feb 3, 2021
-
Fixed-Price-Incentive Contracts:
DOD Has Increased Their Use but Should Assess Contributions to OutcomesGAO-21-181: Published: Feb 3, 2021. Publicly Released: Feb 3, 2021.
Jan 29, 2021
-
Federal Real Property:
Additional Documentation of Decision Making Could Improve Transparency of New Disposal ProcessGAO-21-233: Published: Jan 29, 2021. Publicly Released: Jan 29, 2021.
Jan 19, 2021
-
Federal Rulemaking:
Selected EPA and HHS Regulatory Analyses Met Several Best Practices, but CMS Should Take Steps to Strengthen Its AnalysesGAO-21-151: Published: Dec 17, 2020. Publicly Released: Jan 19, 2021.
Jan 13, 2021
-
Department of Energy Contracting:
Improvements Needed to Ensure DOE Assesses Its Full Range of Contracting Fraud RisksGAO-21-44: Published: Jan 13, 2021. Publicly Released: Jan 13, 2021.
Dec 16, 2020
-
Data Governance:
Agencies Made Progress in Establishing Governance, but Need to Address Key MilestonesGAO-21-152: Published: Dec 16, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 16, 2020.
Dec 9, 2020
-
2020 Census:
The Bureau Concluded Field Work but Uncertainty about Data Quality, Accuracy, and Protection RemainsGAO-21-206R: Published: Dec 9, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 9, 2020.
Dec 3, 2020
-
2020 Census:
Census Bureau Needs to Assess Data Quality Concerns Stemming from Recent Design ChangesGAO-21-142: Published: Dec 3, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 3, 2020. -
2020 Census:
Census Bureau Needs to Ensure Transparency over Data QualityGAO-21-262T: Published: Dec 3, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 3, 2020.
Nov 30, 2020
-
Federal Buying Power:
OMB Can Further Advance Category Management Initiative by Focusing on Requirements, Data, and TrainingGAO-21-40: Published: Nov 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 30, 2020.
Nov 24, 2020
-
Disaster Response:
Agencies Should Assess Contracting Workforce Needs and Purchase Card Fraud RiskGAO-21-42: Published: Nov 24, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 24, 2020.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here