Navy SEALs tell congressman there is a combat rifle shortage
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Navy SEAL trainees carried inflatable boats at the Naval Amphibious Base Coronado in Coronado, Calif. in May 2009. Navy SEAL teams dont have enough combat rifles to go around even as these secretive, highly trained forces are relied on more than ever to hunt down members of the Islamic State group and other terrorists, according to SEALs who have confided in Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif.
WASHINGTON » The tip of the spear may be losing its edge.
Navy SEAL teams don’t have enough combat rifles to go around, even as these highly trained forces are relied on more than ever to carry out counterterrorism operations and other secretive missions, according to SEALs who have confided in Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif.
After SEALs return from a deployment, their rifles are given to other commandos who are shipping out, said Hunter, a former Marine who served three combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. This weapons carousel undercuts the “train like you fight” ethos of the U.S. special operations forces, they said.
Hunter said he’s been contacted by several SEALs, but he declined to provide further information about the weapons they use in order to protect their identities.
U.S. military officials said they were looking into the issue.
Sharing rifles may seem inconsequential. It’s not. The weapons, which are outfitted with telescopic targeting sights and laser pointers, are fine-tuned to individual specifications and become intensely personal pieces of gear.
“They want their rifles,” Hunter said. “It’s their lifeline. So let them keep their guns until they’re assigned desk jobs at the Pentagon.”
The problem isn’t a lack of money, according to Hunter. Congress has frequently boosted the budgets of special operations forces in the years since the 9/11 attacks, he said. Rifles also are among the least expensive items the military buys, leading Hunter to question the priorities of Naval Special Warfare Command, the Coronado, California, organization that oversees the SEALs.
“There is so much wasteful spending,” he said. “Money is not reaching the people it needs to reach.”
Combat rifles can cost up to several thousand dollars depending upon the type of weapon and quality of the sights and other attachments. But the M-4 carbine, the standard combat rifle used by the military branches, cost less than $1,000 each when bought in bulk, according to Defense Department budget documents.
Hunter wrote last month to the Naval Special Warfare Command’s leader, Rear Adm. Brian Losey, about the alleged weapon shortage and also asked him for a full accounting of how the command’s budget was spent last year. Losey has told Hunter to expect a reply by Wednesday.
The congressman said in the Feb. 17 letter that the command’s operation and maintenance account increased by nearly $11 million between 2014 and 2015. Yet it is “suffering from budgetary constraints and lack of funding impacting the ability to equip, train and support the SEALs’ critical needs.”
Army Gen. Joseph Votel, the top officer at U.S. Special Operations Command in Tampa, Florida, and Losey’s superior, told Hunter last week that he is aware of the congressman’s concerns. “We’re certainly running that down,” Votel said during testimony before the House Armed Services Committee.
Votel added that heavily used rifles need to undergo maintenance and that may be contributing to the perception of a shortage. But “we’ll certainly take immediate action,” Votel said, if it’s determined the combat readiness of the SEALs is being degraded.
One of the SEALs who contacted Hunter blamed a slow, penny-pinching bureaucracy that rarely seeks input from the service members who use the gear, according to a brief excerpt of his comments that the congressman’s office provided to The Associated Press.
Delays of as long as three to four years paralyze the acquisition system, the SEAL said. Once an item has finally been approved for purchase, new and better gear may be available, triggering the same lengthy screening process to see if it’s worth getting instead.
Ammunition also is in short supply for training, the SEAL said, because the bulk of it is being used for combat missions.
Hunter also questioned whether the expense of expanding the size of the special operations forces could have left too little in the budget for weapons.
To meet heavy demand, the number of active-duty troops assigned to Special Operations Command, which includes SEALs, Army Green Berets and Rangers, and Air Force combat controllers, has grown dramatically during the past decade — from more than 33,600 to 56,000. There are 2,710 SEALs.
The overall budget for Special Operations Command is $10.4 billion and the Obama administration is proposing a $400 million increase over the current total for the coming fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1.
In his letter to Losey, Hunter also said he’s received reports that the command is slow to settle official travel claims due in part to money shortages. This can cause personal and professional problems for SEALs, who hold high-level security clearances, he said.
Service members who hold U.S. government travel charge cards are ultimately responsible for any late fees, interest and accrued balance on the card. So if the government fails to quickly process a voucher, the service member might have to pay out of pocket or face an overdue bill. A lapse in payment could be forwarded to a credit agency, Hunter said, and that could result in a SEAL being declared ineligible to hold a clearance.
29 responses to “Navy SEALs tell congressman there is a combat rifle shortage”
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Why does the M4 carbine cast $1000/each in bulk? Seems ezpensive.
When you factor in the manufacturer’s kickback the price is about right.
a lot of the defense budget is going to veterans benefits.
What an ignorant comment. Zero of the defense budget goes for veterans benefits. The VA has their own separate budget.
Actually 1local is correct when you consider “Veteran’s Benefits” covers retirement pay and medical care not provided by the VA. As in veterans using regular medical facilities until they reach the age of 65, then move to the VA.
One of many websites showing where the defense budget goes. https://www.cbo.gov/publication/43574
http://useconomy.about.com/od/usfederalbudget/p/military_budget.htm
localguy, is that counting active duty or retired? Huge amounts of the defense budget goes towards active duty and their families benefits. But how much goes towards non-active duty?
This is completely false. Why would you make up and submit this nonsense?
Veteran’s benefits do not cover retirement pay.
This whole thing stinks to high heaven. Forty five years ago I was pipeline manager – – operating out of Makalapa Crater as part of the CINCPACFLT principal logistic agency – – for various munitions from stateside production facilities to combatants deployed off the coast of Vietnam. SEALS had THE highest priority for their Stoner ammunition: special Cadillac-Gage contract deliveries were air shipped on dedicated aircraft to make sure demand was met in a timely manner. Someone has dropped the ball.
Same reason why the rail costs $6.57 billion: change orders.
This doesn’t make sense. Is this a fact or a publicity stunt? What are the facts?
I agree! Something not quite right here!
How many rifles/scopes could you buy for the price of one F-35?
Billions and Billions with the bulk purchase discount.
Two views of the F-35.
Pilot’s view: an extension of his eyes, his legs and his fists just waiting to get into a scrap.
Logisticians view of the same aircraft: 37 million spare parts flying in close formation.
First of all Why is the SEAL’s not properly funded and equipped such as rifle?? What a disgrace for lack of oversite and misuse of funds…
I guess we have commander in chief who’ never served, went to rich and shameless school’s and got the hook up from friends to put him in office…
don’t care about the military and its citizens. Misuse funds comes in a long list from top down…. “The Annual Vaction to hawaii” which cost us tax payers $2milliom-4.5million dollars
Disgraceful to the core…
Same reason DOE has a budget of something like 2.2 BILLION per year of Hawaii taxpayer money but there is not enough money to cool hot classrooms and why HSTA and DOE where proposing a .5% raise in the GET to fund teacher salaries and air conditioners. Never mind some charter school principal (part of the DOE an the board of education is in charge of charters schools) pocketed about $150K of taxpayer money to fund his 1st class airfare, hotel and escort bar tabs and then when caught and convicted just got PROBATION and zero jail time. So does that answer you question why SEAL do not have enough “cheap” rifles.
DOE has not had an external fiscal or management audit in more than forty years, yet handles billions, handing out no bid sole source contracts to who knows how many?
If I were an international arms dealer or drug lord looking for a place to launder billions, I’d be thrilled to discover a place in the most remote location on earth, 5 hours behind NYC, 5 hours ahead (OK 19 hours behind) Tokyo sitting atop major cable and satellite communications hub with enormous bandwidth, a place where citizens are massively apathetic and don’t give a hoot about financial disclosure – – and I’d choose DOE as the perfect outfit to launder my loot.
Buy off a small handful of DOE/BOE insiders, threaten their families with swift eradication if they talk, set up thirty or forty dummy corporations to receive sole source DOE contracts and wham, bam, thankee ma’am I’d be set up, ready to do massive business. Just like that Tom Cruise movie, “The Firm”, but on a much larger scale.
Indeed, for all we know DOE already IS laundering money – – very little of it trickles down to the classroom, that’s for sure.
Funny. I read the headline and wondered how long it would take someone to blame Obama for something that’s been going on for ages. But anyway, if you’re going to go after the President, could you at least try a little harder to write your tirade in English? I guess you didn’t go to “rich and shameless school’s.” [sic]
Apparently Obama is now our mother. He has to know where everything is and how much everything costs. Clearly, Obama’s at fault whenever ANY department runs out of ANY supply. And Americans wonder why most of the world thinks we’re all dumb in the USA.
This place is so discouraging. The ignorance is really remarkable.
klastri, I don’t think it’s ignorance more so cognitive dissonance and just outright dishonesty. That’s what happens when your ideology is being against whatever Obama is for even if it causes you to abandon your own positions. Many of the people on this place make Clinton look steadfast and principled.
“The overall budget for Special Operations Command is $10.4 billion and the Obama administration is proposing a $400 million increase over the current total for the coming fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1.”
Such a disgrace right?
Also, if you’re going to hold the President responsible for literally everything, no one should take you seriously on anything.
Did you hold Bush responsible every time a janitor ran out of supplies at a mundane Federal office?
Whoa Choyd!
Be reasonable.
If there is a snafu in military procurement citizens have a reasonable expectation that, once the news breaks, the commander in chief will do some digging to find out what the problem is and instruct his top hands to get on with solving it. That goes for any president, not just the current occupant of the White House, so I don’t see this as picking on said occupant. It is a duty that goes with the job.
Just delete one of those useless billion dollar F-35 jets from the manifest, and you’ll have enough for 10-rifles per seal.
If this is true… whoever is in charge of the SEALS should “walk the plank” into shark-infested waters.
Sure. That makes a lot of sense. Great comment!
Classic.