US: 4 helicopter engines worth $13M missing (Afghanistan)

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

KABUL, Afghanistan - The U.S. military says four helicopter engines worth $13 million are missing in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region.

U.S. spokeswoman Lt. Col. Rumi Nielson-Green says the helicopters were being shipped overland from the U.S. base in Bagram to a seaport for shipment back to Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

She says the parts went missing sometime before the 101st Airborne's arrival in Afghanistan in April.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080618/ap_on_re_as/afghan_helicopter_engines;_ylt=Amzbb7oWL26eonJ_t87Yqi0Bxg8F

[MichiganVote]

1. Call Blackwater.

[dipsydoodle]

2. Better check for a bargain on

Ebay :rofl:

[agentS]

3. OMFG

We're about to go to battle against a (unusually) large Taliban force and we're missing 4 engines?!

What the hell? Did they fall off the back of the truck? OR was there some "Max Max Road Warrior" bullshyt going on that we don't know about?

[Doctor_J]

5. They're probably IN POSSESSION OF THE TALIBAN

:cry:

[OwnedByFerrets]

4. The amazing part is NOT that

they have gone missing, but rather that we even hear about it.

www.wearableartnow.com

[DFW]

6. Did they check their hip pockets?

Sometimes, little things like that get lodged down in the
recesses of a pocket, and you only find them when you
turn the pockets completely inside out.

[MrsBrady]

9. lol n/t

[truthisfreedom]

7. So these would be for a very particular type of helicopter, right?

It says the type is not being disclosed for security reasons, but one would assume that the enemy doesn't exactly have that type of helicopter handy?

[Arctic Dave]

8. One is on its way to Russia, one the way to China,

one to India and the other to Pakistan. Espionage anyone?

[liam_laddie]

10. A-Dave - you're very likely correct.

Although "they" may could use them as stationary power plants for pumping water through the irrigation ditches in the poppy fields...noisy though. Mules are better, quieter and recycle their waste.

[Squatch]

16. I don't think so...

they're probably sitting at the APOD in a Conex. Some E-4 is probably wondering what the hell he's supposed to do with 4 jet engines.

[Arctic Dave]

17. Gee Squatch, you have to come and piss on my James Bond story.

:D

[MrsBrady]

11. has anybody seen my keys...i mean...

oh...here they are underneath this pallet of 12billion in cash....
...um...ok...

damn it, ...now i can't find those freaking helicopter engines.

*sigh* now where did i last see them...hmmm

[bean fidhleir]

12. $3 MILLION EACH for just the *engines*??!?!?

Something's insane somewhere.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

13. I'm sure that Pakistani trucking company has insurance to cover the cost

Our government would never let such a valuable and sensitive piece of equipment be delivered by a non reputable company.

As to the engines themselves, I imagine the WH is looking for a way to blame their disappearance on Iran even as I type.

Never fear, everything will work out in the end.



:sarcasm:

[KansDem]

14. Better start checking the pawn shops...(nt)

[tanyev]

15. "Oopsie! Now where did I leave those missiles lying around?"

"Maybe they're with my car keys."

[maddezmom]

18. U.S. helicopter engines stolen en route to Pakistan port

KABUL (Reuters) - Four U.S. helicopter engines worth more than $13 million have been stolen while they were being trucked from Afghanistan to a port in Pakistan to be shipped home, the U.S. military said.

Most supplies for the U.S. military in landlocked Afghanistan, including fuel, are transported through Pakistan, and militants in both Pakistan and Afghanistan have been stepping up attacks on shipments.

~snip~

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080619/wl_nm/afghan_usa_helicopters_dc;_ylt=Akfwn68kL4Tmd9YXiBOebNZm.3QA