Construction of a Plastic Media Blasting Facility, Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas

摘要

This report resulted from our Audit of the DoD Aircraft Paint Application and Removal Capabilities (Project No. 4LB-0027). Additional issues related to painting and paint removal for DoD aircraft will be addressed in separate reports. The Air Force proposed construction at Laughlin Air Force Base (AFB), Texas, of a plastic media blasting facility to remove paint from aircraft. The total cost for the new facility and related equipment was estimated at $2.9 million, to be funded from the DoD Base Realignment and Closure Military Construction account. Objective. The objective of this part of our audit was to evaluate the economy and efficiency of constructing a plastic media blasting facility at Laughlin AFB. Audit Results. The Air Force was planning to construct a plastic media blasting facility at Laughlin AFB to strip paint from aircraft even though existing Air Force facilities and equipment would accommodate the paint stripping work load. Because of the time-sensitivity of this report, internal controls were not covered, but will be discussed in a later report. Implementation of the recommendations will allow the Air Force to return $2.9 million to the DoD Base Realignment and Closure Military Construction Account. See Appendix B for a summary of potential benefits of audit. Summary of Recommendations. We recommend that the Air Force terminate the planned construction of the plastic media blasting facility and related equipment for Laughlin AFB; modify the paint stripping facility at Columbus AFB, Mississippi, to accommodate the T-1 aircraft; and discontinue plans to strip paint from F-15 and F-16 aircraft at field level.