Since the first of the year, the Pentagon Inspector General has released three of eight reports of investigation into programs that may have been tainted by Darleen Druyun—the one-time Air Force acquisition official who served time in prison for violating ethics rules, principally for favoring Boeing on contract awards to secure a job for herself and relatives. One investigation reviewed the procurement of a new aircraft cargo loader—dubbed the Tunner by the Air Force—and found Druyun “influenced” the source of repair for the new loader, directing the work to Systems & Electronics Inc. The other two concerned the C-5 avionics modernization program and F-16 simulator services, in both of which the IG found that Druyun had favored Lockheed Martin.
The use of a military counter-drone laser on the southwest border this week—which prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to abruptly close the airspace over El Paso, Texas—will be a “case study” on the complex web of authorities needed to employ such weapons near civilian areas and the consequences of agencies…
