$149,072 for soap dispenser! How Boeing fleeced the US Air Force, charging nearly $1 million for twelve spare parts

A Pentagon watchdog reported that Boeing overcharged the U.S. Air Force for spare parts for C-17 transport planes. This included a soap dispenser marked up by 7,943%, according to the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General.

The Inspector General revealed that the Air Force overpaid nearly $1 million for twelve spare parts, investing $149,072 for an unspecified number of soap dispensers. Inspector General Robert Storch emphasized, "The Air Force needs to establish and implement more effective internal controls to help prevent overpaying for spare parts for the remainder of this contract, which continues through 2031.”

This issue is not new. In 2018, the Air Force had reportedly spent $10,000 on a toilet seat cover for its C-5 cargo plane.


Boeing is currently reviewing the report and mentioned that it "appears to be based on an inapt comparison of the prices paid for parts that meet military specifications and designs versus basic commercial items that would not be qualified or approved for use on the C-17." Boeing plans to provide a detailed response soon and stated that the spare parts were significantly modified to meet military standards.

The Pentagon's budget surpassed $900 billion last year, and overcharges by defense contractors are a recurrent issue for internal watchdogs. However, they remain challenging to detect. The report also noted that the fair pricing of $22 million worth of spare parts could not be determined due to the lack of a historical price database, supplier quotes, or identification of commercially comparable parts.