Check out the Most Expensive Military Mistakes Ever Made! From brand new planes on a graveyard to some serious environmental blunders, this top 8 list of expensive mistakes has some crazy army fails.
8. BLUE DEVIL AIRSHIP
During the War in Afghanistan, a massive reconnaissance airship called the Blue Devil was built for the United States Air Force. The airship’s primary purpose was to capture and process data from 12 onboard sensors, and then deliver the data to ground troops.
7. EXPEDITIONARY FIGHTING VEHICLE
Also known as the Advanced Amphibious Vehicle, the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle, or EFV, was an amphibious vehicle designed for the U.S. Marine Corps by General Dynamics during the 1990’s and 2000’s. The 38-ton “swimming tank” was essentially meant to be a landing craft that converted into a vehicle and was intended to replace the outdated AAV-7A1 which had entered service in 1972.
6. ALENIA C-27J SPARTAN
The future seemed promising for the C-27J Spartan twin turboprop in 2007, when it was chosen for the U.S. military’s $600 million Joint Cargo Aircraft Program. In September 2008, the United States received its first C-27J. In total, the Air Force ordered 38 of the aircraft at a unit cost of around $32 million per plane.
5. AGENT ORANGE
You’ve probably heard of Agent Orange, the highly toxic herbicide that was used by the U.S. military during the Vietnam War to destroy crops and forest cover in territory occupied by the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army. Between 1961 and 1971, over 20 million gallons of various dangerous chemicals were sprayed across 4.5 million acres in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, in a U.S. program codenamed Operation Ranch Hand.
4. 1968 THULE AIR BASE CRASH
On January 21, 1968, an American B52 Bomber carrying four nuclear bombs crashed into the sea near northwestern Greenland, one of the most frigid places on Earth. Human error was to blame for the crash – a crew member had stuffed seat cushions near a heating vent, causing a fire. When the smoke became unbearably thick, the crew had no choice but to eject, and the plane crashed 700 miles above the Arctic Circle, near America’s Thule Air Base.
3. BIKINI ATOLL CONTAMINATION
Between 1946 and 1958, the U.S. detonated 23 nuclear devices on Bikini Atoll, one of the Marshall Islands. Native residents of the island were relocated to nearby Rongerik Atoll and Kili Island. The scientists and military authorities running the experiments at the time promised the displaced residents that they’d be able to return home after the nuclear tests were finished.
2. CONTAMINATED WATER AT CAMP LEJEUNE
From 1953 to 1987, tap water at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune was heavily contaminated with toxic chemicals. Soldiers and families living there drank and bathed in the poisonous water, which contained concentrations of chemicals ranging from 240 to 3,400 times the permitted safety levels. Over 70 toxins were discovered in the water, including degreaser, benzene, vinyl chloride, and dry cleaning solvent.
1. FUTURE COMBAT SYSTEMS
Launched in 2003, Future Combat Systems, or FCS, was a modernization program for the U.S. Army. Well, it was supposed to be. The program’s vision included a battlefield network of unprecedented speed and flexibility, along with new brigades equipped with high-tech manned and unmanned vehicles.
