The Defense Department failed its annual audit for the sixth consecutive year, according to Pentagon Comptroller Mike McCord.
DoD Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh acknowledged the results but emphasized that they are learning from each audit and remains committed to improving its processes and balancing its books.
The audit consisted of 29 sub-audits and examined approximately $4T in assets and liabilities. Conducting the audit cost around $187M. \
The Pentagon passed seven of 29 sub-audits in 2023, the same as last year. Auditors visited 700+ sites. Half of the department's claimed assets could not be accounted for, according to auditors' findings.
In response to the failures, Texas lawmakers have introduced the "Audit the Pentagon Act" aiming to incentivize government spending transparency. The act seeks to address concerns about the lack of accountability and oversight in DoD's financial management.
The Pentagon began auditing itself in 2018 under the Trump administration. (Press Run Down 11/17/23)
GAO: Helo ops at Army, ANG limited flight hours, simulator time
A 2-year Government Accountability Office (GAO) performance audit found that helicopter operations at both the Army and Air National Guard suffered from a lack of pilot proficiency and experience due to limited flight hours and simulator time.
Contributing factors included a lack of aircraft availability triggered by inadequate maintenance staffing and quality issues with refurbished aircraft, simulator scarcity, and pilots who are overburdened with administrative tasks.
The GAO investigated causal factors in 298 non-combat helicopter accidents between 2012-21 that killed 28 across aircraft types, including the Army Guard’s AH-64 Apache, UH/HH-60 Black Hawk, CH-47 Chinook, UH-72 Lakota, and Air National Guard’s HH-60G Pave Hawk. Of this fleet, the CH-47 had the highest accident rate while the AH-64 had the most fatal accidents.
According to the report, “Unit commanders and pilots consistently identified pilot inexperience ... among the factors that contributed to helicopter accidents."
“The bottom line is that National Guard pilots are not flying enough to meet their training goals to become proficient pilots in general,” said Randy Neice, GAO senior defense analyst who was on the audit team.
NG officials noted that the minimum flying hours per month required for pilots to maintain skills is 6.77 hours. Most pilots are not meeting those goals.
At the Air National Guard, none of its units were meeting the goal of 12.5 pilot flying hours per month deemed required to be combat ready.
Other factors identified included heavy reliance on part-time pilots; instructor, pilot, and aircrew shortages; and maintenance issues.
While the Guards are taking steps to address this problem, that action to date “really hasn’t been comprehensive in nature.” (AIN 11/01/23) GAO: U.S. Guard Helicopter Pilots Burdened by Limited Flight Hours | Aviation International News (ainonline.com)
US population projected downward by 2100
The U.S. population is projected to reach a high of nearly 370M in 2080 before edging downward to 366M in 2100, according to our 2023 National Population Projections.
Find an in-depth analysis of the nation’s population by age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, and nativity through 2060 and by age, sex, and nativity through 2100. (Census Bureau 11/17/23)
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