Australian Defence withheld "damning information" about the contamination threat in RAAF Williamtown environmental reports needed to approve a $1B facilities upgrade to support the new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, according to documents obtained by the Newcastle Herald.
Defence also "repeatedly withheld" the same information on contamination threats at the base on three separate inquiries undertaken by the Federal Parliament's standing committee on public works since 2014.
The upgrade plans require digging in a contaminated zone at the air base. The Herald also reports that in 2012, toxic chemicals from RAAF Williamtown were detected in the surface and ground water off and on base.
In order to bed-down the F-35 squadrons to be based at RAAF Williamtown, various secure maintenance and operational facilities have to be built.
This may also involve making the runway much longer. Unlike the RAAF's F-18 Hornet and newer Super Hornet, the F-35 needs more runway to operate safely.
The F-35 is a program in deep trouble, both in its concept of war operations and numerous technical faults. To date the F-35A, which Australia is interested in, has a cost per flight hour 3-4 times that of the RAAF F-18s without offering significant combat capability.
The Entrenched Defence Bureaucracy already has a notorious reputation in regard to managing multi-billion dollar defence projects.
The F-35 has already been under fire in the area surrounding RAAF Williamtown in regard to the increased noise envelop which is predicted once it is in operation.
Today, Defence will be facing a standing committee in Canberra to address this cover up.
.
No comments:
Post a Comment