Giant Orca Drone for Navy is Faltering on Boeing Shortcomings, GAO Says

Orca, the U.S. Navy’s mine-laying drone, is running at least three years late and 64% over original cost estimates because the service failed to determine if aerospace giant Boeing had the skills needed to build the seagoing vessel, according to congressional auditors.

“These cost overruns and schedule delays are attributable, in part, to the Navy’s decision to not require the contractor to demonstrate its readiness to fabricate the prototype, as called for by leading acquisition practices,” the Government Accountability Office said in a report released Wednesday.