H.B. company supplied bogus aircraft products, Army memo says

Huntington Beach military contractor supplied bogus products to “every aircraft manufacturer in the world,” according to a 2006 Army memo, released by a watchdog group today.

The memo accuses Airtech International Inc. of changing how its products are made without telling its customers, even when those changes would require a full recertification to make sure they were up to construction standards. Airtech is also accused of violating federal law by giving kickbacks to Department of Defense contractors in exchange for preferential treatment.

Airtech supplies films, adhesives, resins and other parts used to make composite materials in high-tech aircraft. While a separate Federal Aviation Administration investigation has not corroborated the charges, a national government watchdog group said the agency has been “duped.”

“In my career investigating allegations of fraudulent acts against the [Department of Defense] seldom have I come across a company with such brazen disregard for the safety of soldiers and civilians as well as for the sanctity of laws, rules and regulations,” the investigator writes. The memo recommends the Department of Defense take action against Airtech.

An FAA investigation didn’t substantiate those findings, but the Project on Government Oversight (POGO), which investigates corruption and waste in government contractors, issued a news release saying the agency had “exhibited textbook flaws in its investigative methods.”

“It’s likely the FAA was duped,” POGO investigator Nick Schwellenbach said in a statement.

Efforts to reach Airtech representatives for comment were unsuccessful.