Your tax dollars at work.

[dcc]

This is what we pay taxes for?

Rep. Miller denounces funding of struggling aircraft

U.S. Rep. Brad Miller of Raleigh is calling for an end to years of federal funding to an aerospace company that is trying to develop a military aircraft that takes off and lands vertically.

Miller, a Democrat, is scheduled to appear tonight on ABC's World News Tonight, which plans to air a report on the DP-2 Aircraft. DuPont Aerospace Co., based in San Diego, is developing the aircraft.

Congressional earmarks have provided $63 million over 20 years for the DP-2, which is the brainchild of aerospace engineer Tony duPont. According to a news release issued today by Miller's office, the aircraft has never flown successfully.

"After 20 years and $63 million dollars, I think Tony duPont needs to find another source of funding rather than the American taxpayer," Miller is quoted in the news release as saying.

Miller is chairman of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee of the House Science and Technology Committee. The subcommittee is scheduled to hold a hearing Tuesday on the DP-2.

The aircraft has suffered from four mishaps in the past four years, and some government experts question the competence and capabilities of duPont Aerospace, according to Miller's office. Miller said a series of Republicans in Congress have worked to ensure funding for the project, despite questions about whether the investment is worthwhile.

This "aircraft" has not left the ground much less the flat bed truck that it spends time on in the twenty years that the Republicans have given this turkey millions with no apparent expectations for a timely or functional result.

[ndeniche]

i hate it when those jerks do that... our president buyed a private luxury jet with OUR money...

[joshSCH]

oh my, that's nothing compared to the pork barreling that has occured yearly.. someone should post that, and piss everyone off..

[dcc]

Granted the government's annual waste of tax dollars is reprehensible, but this project was kept on life support for 20 years!?! The "pork barrel" waste that you read about is what is being found, what I'm concerned about is how many more of these pipe dreams are being supported with our tax dollars.

[Ezzaral]

Yes, the pork-barreling is deplorable, but unlike the aircraft thing at least most of those projects do get completed and benefit someone (roads, bridges, etc).

I just still cannot believe they are allowed to attach completely unrelated expenditure items like those to a bill they know must pass.

[jbennet]

a military aircraft that takes off and lands vertically.

Your goverment are obviosuly a bunch of dumbasses then. Thats called VTOL. The Harrier jumpjet has it. Has been serving in the royal airforce since the 1960s.

from wiki:

VTOL is an abbreviaton for Vertical Take-Off and Landing. VTOL describes fixed-wing aircraft that can lift off vertically

Harrier Jump Jet, often referred to as just "the Jump Jet", covers a series of a military VSTOL jet aircraft. It is capable of vertical/short takeoff and landing (V/STOL) via thrust vectoring and is the only truly successful design of this type from the many that arose in the 1960s.

[Ezzaral]

Transcript of congressional hearing on this, May 9th, 2001:
http://www.skyaid.org/Skycar/congress_may_9_2001.htm

[joshSCH]

Your goverment are obviosuly a bunch of dumbasses then. Thats called VTOL. The Harrier jumpjet has it. Has been serving in the royal airforce since the 1960s.

from wiki:

Well why the hell didn't the British just tell us how to make one ;)

[jbennet]

You guys have a VTOL helicopter and your new JSF will be VTOL too?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-22_Osprey

how come you got a nice airforce by the way. ours is full of ancient outdated stuff

[Dave Sinkula]

Something I was recently shown that interested me professionally, but is also a bit humorous:
http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=6225

[dcc]

how come you got a nice airforce by the way. ours is full of ancient outdated stuff

Because our dumbasses are obviously smarter than your dumbasses and didn't invest in one aircraft that is so limited in its applications.

What is your problem with Americans? You are constantly taking post shots at us without any qualifications.

[Dave Sinkula]

Because our dumbasses are obviously smarter than your dumbasses and didn't invest in one aircraft that is so limited in its applications.

Naw. It's because their dumbasses rely on our dumbasses to defend their dumbasses. ;)

[dcc]

That's incredible, after all the noise about the potential problems of Y2K and fuss about that someone didn't take this little glitch into consideration. Someone will be looking for a new job.

[Dave Sinkula]

Date and time are a peculiar beast. Most folks just don't realize that "when" really needs to know "where" first. And that's only the beginning.

It sucks putting the history of time in devices that shouldn't care.

[joshSCH]

how come you got a nice airforce by the way. ours is full of ancient outdated stuff

haha..

Because our dumbasses are obviously smarter than your dumbasses and didn't invest in one aircraft that is so limited in its applications.

What is your problem with Americans? You are constantly taking post shots at us without any qualifications.

Ah, come on.. I don't think its offensive at all.. he's just joking around.. the Americans and the Brits are pretty much the same.. Every since the revolutionary war (that we whooped some ass in btw ;)), our cultures have stayed very closely related, and have not yet separated out much. So, truly.. if anyone disses the U.S., they are dissing the UK too.

[jbennet]

FYI, I dont have a problem with everyday Americans, I like them. What I do have a problem with however, is certain people in thier government who invest huge amounts of cash in VTOL when the technology has been around for ages and works just fine.