WASHINGTON, March 28 (UPI) -- The skyrocketing costs of the U.S. Army's plan to implement a high-tech makeover have some of its staunchest congressional supporters scratching their heads.
Army officials said Saturday that Future Combat Systems, the first phase of the Army's construction of a "technological bridge to the future," could cost as much as $145 billion, the New York Times reported.
House Armed Services Committee Vice Chairman Curt Weldon, R-Pa., usually a major booster of Pentagon funding, complained of being "left with impossible decisions" at a March 16 hearing on the costs of the military's futuristic plans.
"We're dealing today with a train wreck," Weldon said, bemoaning the trillions of dollars the Defense Department is spending on major weapons systems, hinting that Future Combat might suffer from those excesses.
