The Army’s Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) program continues to be on cost and on schedule despite comments made Wednesday morning by the service’s top officer alleging that the total program cost had grown by $2.6 billion in a year.
Photo: BAE Systems
In response to a line of questioning by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Army Chief of Staff Mark Milley told a Senate panel he was aware of $2.6 billion in cost growth but could not account for its cause.
“I’m going to head out there and take a look at this whole thing, and I’ll report back to you,” Milley said during a Senate appropriations defense subcommittee hearing. “With what I see as my increased role in acquisition, I’m going to dig into this.”
However, later Wednesday afternoon, a spokesman for Milley said the general had been misinformed, and that the AMPV program remains on cost.
The source of the confusion seems to be a Congressional Research Services report on the program published in October. The report noted that the estimated total program cost ballooned from $10.2 billion in fiscal year 2015 to $12.8 billion the following year, with increases both to procurement and research and development.
However, that $12.8 billion figure, which was derived from a press report, cited a Government Accountability Office estimate instead of the Army’s and was later corrected.
As one of the few new-start vehicle acquisition programs planned for this decade, the AMPV program currently occupies a unique position in the Army’s procurement portfolio. The service plans to buy 2,907 vehicles to replace its M113 fleet, which have been in use since the Vietnam War. BAE Systems in 2014 won an initial $382 million engineering and manufacturing development (EMD) contract for its offering, a tracked AMPV based on its Bradley Fighting Vehicle.
“The AMPV program is continuing to move forward, we are working toward the next milestone in the program, which is Critical Design Review,” BAE spokeswoman Megan Mitchell said in a statement. “Along with the Army, BAE Systems is committed to performing on schedule and budget and we look forward to going into production in 2016.”
During the hearing, Durbin questioned the officials about the Army’s recent history of failed acquisition programs, asking if the AMPV cost growth indicated that the service did not have its hands around the problem.
“There is no doubt that the Army has had some serious challenges when it came to modernization and its acquisition programs,” replied acting Army Secretary Patrick Murphy. “I do think that there is new leadership in the building that are on top of this to make sure that we are not wasting taxpayer dollars,” especially as fiscal constraints grow.