U.S. Navy/Military Sealift Command: Weak Contract Administration Led to Unsafeand Poorly Maintained Ships

摘要

This report responds to the allegations concerning the operation of nine Sealifttankers leased by the Department of Navy's Military Sealift Command (MSC) to transport jet fuel and other petroleum products to ports worldwide in support of U.S. military efforts. GAO investigated whether (1) the ships' equipment had deteriorated because of inadequate maintenance and (2) the Sealift tankers were being operated unsafely due to unqualified and inadequate numbers of crew. The investigation focused on the time period that International Marine Carriers, Inc. (IMC) has been operating the nine MSC Sealift tankers-April 1990 to May 1994. Numerous adverse conditions on all nine tankers in the tanker-leasing program affecting the ships, the crews, the environment, and the were found program. First, MSC's lack of oversight of ship maintenance requirements caused the ship's conditions to deteriorate. The lack of maintenance, in turn, adversely affected the ships' safety and mission readiness. As of April 1994, this shortcoming had resulted in an additional cost to MSC, and thus the government, of approximately $20 million. Second, the lack of qualified and fully staffed crews contributed not only to oil spills with their adverse effects on the environment but also to the lack of mission security and efficiency. MSC failed to enforce the contract's crewing requirements and had no system to determine if the contractor was complying with the requirements. This report summarizes these findings.