Stars and Stripes By TONY CAPACCIO 8/8/2017
The U.S. Air Force is actively pursuing the recovery of funds from Northrop Grumman Corp. in a dispute over upkeep of its Joint STARS surveillance aircraft, including damage to a radar during maintenance, according to a service spokesman.
While the amounts are small by Defense Department standards — totaling less than $15 million — it's a rare public admission by a military service that it's holding a defense contractor and its own contract managers accountable for poor performance.
The push for repayment comes as Northrop is competing in a $7 billion contest for a successor to Joint STARS that's likely to pit it against Boeing and Lockheed Martin and could count against Northrop in that contest.
Derek Kaufman, a spokesman for the Air Force Materiel Command, which oversees management of Northrop acquisition and support programs, said in an email that the service "will seek compensation."
Northrop is performing maintenance on Joint STARS aircraft under a $7 billion "total system support contract" awarded in September 2000 that had a six-year base with 16 annual options.
More:
https://www.stripes.com/news/air-force/air-force-pressing-northrop-over-damaged-radar-extra-fees-1.481971
