A report by the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) on the acquisition of the C-27J Spartan for the RAAF has concluded that the selection of the transport aircraft to replace the Caribou under AIR 8000 Phase 2 represented value for money.
Defence agreed to acquire 10 aircraft through the US government’s Foreign Military Sales program as a direct source procurement, meaning an open tender was not required. Shadow Defence minister Senator David Johnston expressed concerns about the procurement process and requested that a performance audit of the project be carried out by the ANAO. Senator Johnston released a statement on August 16 in which he said the report’s findings vindicated the concerns raised last year about the “flawed” acquisition process.
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However, Minister for Defence Materiel Dr Mike Kelly responded on August 20 by accusing Senator Johnston of ignoring the key findings of the independent audit.