European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 22, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Pago 4 the stars and stripes sunday september 22, 1985 Dingell accuses 2 companies of fraud says firms Fried Fose of unneeded tools by Norman Black a military writer Washington a rep. John d. Dingell citing the results of a new con Gressional audit accused two Large de sense contractors saturday of plotting to overcharge the air Force for tools to re pair a Jet radar system. In a five Page letter to defense Secre tary Caspar w. Weinberger released in Advance of congressional hearings Mon Day Dingell accused general dynamics corp. And Westinghouse electric corp. Of conspiring to develop and sell new repair tools similar to ones the air Force had already paid for. General dynamics knew full Well that the air Force had already paid Westing House for the development of these tools the Michigan Democrat wrote. This is not Sloppy business practice on the part of general dynamics it is fraud. The entire acquisition was clearly Dou ble billed. It is fraud on the part of Westinghouse to plot with general dynamics. It is also not the finest hour for the air Force for having allowed this to  Dingell based his allegations on the re sults of a new general accounting office study that he commissioned in january. The Gao report which was also re leased saturday  not accuse either company of criminal activity. But it does assert that general dynamics recommended the design development and production of new repair tools for the f-16 s radar system even though equivalent tools were already in use at Westing  the existing tools had been developed and several sets of the tools had been manufactured by Westinghouse under its radar manufacturing contract with Gener Al  the Gao said. The Gao also listed example after example of tools that were recommended for Purchase by the air Force even though they were not needed of serious Cost charging errors by both firms and of exorbitant prices for tools that do not reflect their intrinsic  among the tools covered by the con tract that the Gao studied was a Hexagon wrench offered in the air Force at a Cost of $9,609. The existence of that particular proposal was disclosed by a Senate panel in november 1983. The air Force did not pay for any of the wrenches. Among other questionable tool Pur chases cited by the Gao in the new report was a $163,843 vacuum heat maintenance  one year after delivery the stand is still in storage because the air Force had not yet received a technical order showing How to use  our review raises serious questions about the performance in this Case of the general dynamics corp. To identify and recommend procurement Only of needed support equipment items through the most Cost effective method the Gao  Pentagon in a prepared statement released on Weinberger s behalf said it took very seriously the allegations con tainted in chairman Dingell s  the statement also noted however thai the problems with the tool contract were first reported in 1983,and several procurements were cancelled and other prices were revised  new guidelines arc also in place to prevent any recurrence the statement said. . Moore a spokesman for Westing House the nations 3th-largest defense contractor said the firm would not discuss specific details of the Gao report before monday s hearing. But he added that his company s management asserts that any accusation of defense contract fraud is to tally unfounded and  Alvin Spivak a spokesman for general dynamics the nation s third biggest de sense contractor said the Story of the wrench and other repair tools has been told and retold Many times and his firm now recommends that the Pentagon buy directly from subcontractors. In its report to Dingell the Gao said the Saga of the repair tools began in Jan uary 1982 when general dynamics As the prime contractor for the f-16 Jet fighter submitted a list of recommended tools the air Force would need to begin handling its own repairs of the Jet s radar in late 1984. The radar is made by Westinghouse and it was handling repairs at the time. The air Force certified the equipment As urgently needed and approved an unpriced modification to an existing contract. According to the Gao that change authorized Genera dynamics and Wislin Ghousi to incur costs up to a maximum $1.7 million to provide the tools. The air Force eventually negotiated a final payment totalling $835,835 for 16 of the recommended tools plus the technical drawings for another four. The parts acquired ranged from the maintenance stand to 12 Bor sight fixtures 69 electronic lest kits a single Brush Assembly tool and 30 valve wrenches. Over and beyond the proposal involving the wrench and three other parts that the air Force ultimately refused to buy the Gao reported problems with most of the parts that were acquired. For example it said general dynamics recommended the Purchase of an Antenna motor Brush Assembly tool at a Price of $10,624. However. Westinghouse  not use such a tool in conducting the repair function. Instead Westinghouse uses a 3 by-8-Inch Sheet of flexible  the Gao also said it found general dynamics had defectively priced the 12 Bor sight fixtures by using outdated mate rial estimates. The firm has offered a $30.858 refund on the total $231,906 paid by the air Force in response to our find  executives will Fry of Meef i Fank quotas during strike Detroit a management employees of general dynamics corp. Will attempt take Over the tasks of nearly 5,000 strikers to meet production quotas of army my tanks the defense contractor says. United Auto workers Union members struck five Gen eral dynamics plants in three Stales wednesday in a con tract dispute Over wages and safety issues. A spokesman for the company s land systems division said Friday that the company will use about 1,000 management employees to continue building tanks at Assembly plants in Warren mich., and Lima Ohio. Management employees also will be used at parts plants in Center line and Sterling Heights mich., and Scranton a. We arc confident we can meet our september objectives for the  land systems spokesman William Sheil said adding that production schedules Call for 35 tanks per month at the Warren and Lima plants. Both sides have said they arc willing to return to the bargaining table where two tentative agreements were reached but later scrapped. Law officials questioned whether management work ers could meet the production schedule. I be got their workforce and their expertise out on picket lines with me said Mike Pennington vice president of local 1200, which represents about 1,500 striking worker at Warren. If they do meet the production objectives then the government would be getting junk and the taxpayers would be ripped off he said. Sheil said general dynamics has no plans to hire re placement workers. Seven cormorants atop the Wing of a Fok Ter biplane sculpture pay no attention to snoopy s plan to gun snoopy s on their Tail Down the red Baron from behind. The san Francisco Bay landmark is on the Emeryville Berkeley mudflats. Church Council proposes ratings for to programs new York up the National Council of churches accused the entertain ment Industry of allowing a dangerous amount of violence to make its Way into films and television movies and the Council has suggested a rating system for television programs. The Church organization which claims 40 million members Friday released the findings of a two year study on violence and sexual violence in film television Cable and Home video urging viewers holding Stock in corporations that advertise on Cable and network television to persuade those corporations not to sponsor violent programs. The Council which held five Days of hearings in Washington d.c., new York and los Angeles and listened to testimony from entertainers and politicians suggested Many ways to curb violence in mov ies and television including petitioning the Federal communications commission to deny a License renewal to a station airing shows with gratuitous violence. It also proposed a rating system for Tele vision similar to the movie Industry s and called for mandatory locks on Cable to to shut out a rated and a rated programs. The Council blamed the violence on the control of program production and distribution by a few powerful companies the drive for profits and failure of the acc to exercise its Powers. The television information office blasted the Council s report saying its research was inconclusive and in Many cases contradictory. It added that the recommendation the acc deny licenses based on program Content would open the door to government  the Council study concluded that Vio Lence in the Media leads to aggressive be Havior by children teen agers and adults who watch programs and that the violence in television shows and movies is increasing. Violence in children s weekend programs reached a record High in 1982-1983, with a rate of 30.3 violent incidents per hour the report said. There had been an average of 20 violent incidents per hour during the previous 17 years it said