What the Pentagons missiles and bombs actually cost prepare to be disgusted..

I do not know about you guys and gals but these numbers are sickening IMO especially when stuff does not work as advertised if history is any indicator.

"Oh no problem a fix is in the works and it will only cost a few months (or years) to fix the problem," which we as tax payers will be stuck with the bill. Only a defense contractor could justify the cost of some of this stuff... The words of Eisenhower warning about the MIC ring truer today than when he first spoke the warning.


The full tiles is: Here Is What Each Of The Pentagon's Air-Launched Missiles And Bombs Actually Cost

Air-to-Air Missiles:

AIM-9X Sidewinder (Air Force) - $472,000
AIM-9X Sidewinder (Navy) - $430,818
These unit prices are averages for the entire projected 2021 Fiscal Year orders for both services, which include lots of AIM-9X-2 Block II and AIM-9X-3 Block II+ missiles, the latter of which is specifically for variants F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
AIM-120D Advanced Medium-Range Air To Air Missile (AMRAAM) (Air Force)- $1.095 million
AIM-120D Advanced Medium-Range Air To Air Missile (AMRAAM) (Navy)- $995,018

Air-to-Surface Missiles:

AGM-88G Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile-Extended Range (AARGM-ER) (Navy) - $6.149 million
AGM-114 Hellfire (Air Force) - $70,000
This unit price is an average for the entire projected 2021 Fiscal Year order, which may include a variety of Hellfire missiles in Air Force service, including, but not limited to the AGM-114R2, AGM-114R4, AGM-114R9E, and AGM-114R12.
This is also the unit price for orders in the base budget. The Air Force is also looking to purchase a much larger number of AGM-114 variants through the supplemental Overseas Contingency Operations budget at an average unit cost $31,000.
AGM-114 Hellfire (Army) - $213,143

www.thedrive.com...

Just the cost of the first few listed out of the vast inventory we are paying for..

An older video that brings up some of the incredible waste (waste being a nice word for ineptness and gouging) in the MIC
youtu.be...

Sorry bud....I'm not disgusted at all. Sure we could probably make them cheaper but they are advanced tech.

a reply to: 727Sky

I've never believed the amount the government pays for anything is correct.

In the Navy we used to pay 15 dollars for a .20 cent screw.

I think its just a way to hide where money is really going.

a reply to: 727Sky

Honestly those prices are not that outrageous.

I would guess that you aren't in the manufacturing field, and certainly not involved in government contracting.

I'm not going to argue that government is not wasteful. They are, but there are supplier requirements, particularly in defense contracting, that are expensive, and must be followed to the letter.

Everything from a simple nut, or washer must be certified and approved of by multiple vendors. Outside source testing must be performed. The "packaging" alone on something like you are talking about can easily run in the 10s of thousands of dollars.

You don't bargain shop for weaponry, and to say the performance of modern US weaponry is "suspect" is ludicrous.

Come up with any complex high tech assembly, and do some research on what it would cost you to get it off the ground.

$300 hammer? Yes, ridiculous. Half million $ guided missle? Not so much.

a reply to: FauxMulder

You do realize that the Navy must maintain a chain of custody for that screw from ore to casting/turning, install, inspection, replacement & disposal, right?

Navy screws don't cost $15 because they are screws. They cost $15 because they must meet certain standards and evidentiary data must be kept and maintained from dirt to disposal.

Until we stop wasting money on these weapons of war and attacking people for reasons I can’t personally fathom I don’t see how anyone can justify cutting existing social programs. I am no socialist, but it seems to me we should be spending on American citizens long before we should be paying to bomb people half way across the world.

a reply to: 727Sky

The cost of those is only part of where the tax goes, no-one in the government is even allowed to talk about where other chunks of cash go, it probably even isn't on the books:

originally posted by: 0zzymand0s
a reply to: FauxMulder

You do realize that the Navy must maintain a chain of custody for that screw from ore to casting/turning, install, inspection, replacement & disposal, right?

Navy screws don't cost $15 because they are screws. They cost $15 because they must meet certain standards and evidentiary data must be kept and maintained from dirt to disposal.

Makes sense considering Military applications are a National Security issue and we don't want to unknowingly outsource cheap chinese metal from some contractor looking to save a few bucks.

a reply to: 727Sky

Toilet seat: $495.00

Military grade claw hammer: $295.00

originally posted by: dfnj2015
a reply to: 727Sky

Toilet seat: $495.00

Military grade claw hammer: $295.00

Link?

originally posted by: Mach2

originally posted by: dfnj2015
a reply to: 727Sky

Toilet seat: $495.00

Military grade claw hammer: $295.00

Link?

Only the Pentagon Could Spend $640 on a Toilet Seat

That's was easier that I thought. I just made up the first round of numbers!

a reply to: dfnj2015

Here's another one:

www.latimes.com...

"$37 screws, a $7,622 coffee maker, $640 toilet seats; : suppliers to our military just won’t be oversold"

a reply to: Arnie123

Bingo.

Sailors should buy their chief a beer if they want the lowdown on those screws. A little legging and a bit of thinking goes a long way.

originally posted by: Metallicus
Until we stop wasting money on these weapons of war and attacking people for reasons I can’t personally fathom I don’t see how anyone can justify cutting existing social programs. I am no socialist, but it seems to me we should be spending on American citizens long before we should be paying to bomb people half way across the world.

Not saying you are wrong, because in a perfect world there would be no need for military force. We, however, can't even stop the killing in Chicago or Baltimore.

It suffices to say that, sadly, it is not a utopian planet. Religious fanaticism, wealth disparity and greed are just a few of the reasons someone has to keep some semblance of order, lest we find ourselves in another global conflict.

Don't get me wrong, IMO the US often sticks it's nose into places with zero national interests, and no real plan for an end game.

On the other hand, if we weren't a superpower, with the ability to project force to most of the globe, our enemies would take advantage of the opening.

originally posted by: Metallicus
Until we stop wasting money on these weapons of war and attacking people for reasons I can’t personally fathom I don’t see how anyone can justify cutting existing social programs. I am no socialist, but it seems to me we should be spending on American citizens long before we should be paying to bomb people half way across the world.

Well you don't make money through social programs for citizens you make money through war, and money is all that matters.

originally posted by: Oathkeeper73
Sorry bud....I'm not disgusted at all. Sure we could probably make them cheaper but they are advanced tech.

I'm not disgusted in the slightest for having some of the best possible military technology.

I'm more disgusted at how liberally it gets used on "enemies".

originally posted by: dfnj2015
a reply to: 727Sky

Toilet seat: $495.00

Military grade claw hammer: $295.00

Can you believe there are still people wanting the government to run our healthcare system?

a reply to: FauxMulder

have you looked at what commercial and private aerospace pay for " routine parts " and fasteners ???????????

i [ in a previous life ] had a stint doing engine rebuilds for a privateer porche racer [ basically one milionare with a dream ]

the mark up from road going OEM porche bits > race was fro 110% to over 300% - but the reason always made sense - ie going from hi tensile plated steel to treated titamium .

but his father and a plane - with basically an aero spec porche engine - and i was asked - can i build him a " spare " as he had only 100 hours remaining on the one in service

and screw me - the mark up on aero certified parts was unreal

a reply to: dfnj2015

Like I said, the government is wasteful. It isn't limited to the pentagon though.

I appreciate the links, but without context of the specific situations, they don't mean that much.

How many coffee makers were purchased at that price. Was it 1 coffee maker for use on air force one? Was it three coffee makers for NORAD? Was it all the coffee makers at Ft. Bragg?

originally posted by: 0zzymand0s
a reply to: FauxMulder

You do realize that the Navy must maintain a chain of custody for that screw from ore to casting/turning, install, inspection, replacement & disposal, right?

Navy screws don't cost $15 because they are screws. They cost $15 because they must meet certain standards and evidentiary data must be kept and maintained from dirt to disposal.

Bull.

It's the same hardware you can pick up at any Ace hardware.

A grade 8 bolt is a grade 8 bolt.