As usual, only a few of Ametek Rotron's Pentagon weapons contracts find their way to the public domain, and virtually none of their private business. It's become even harder to find out info since they
farmed out their contracting to military bottom-feeder Kellstrom Defense, which then morphed as a result of a merger into AllClear Aerospace & Defense. But here, from
DIBBS, are a few recent government contracts that suggest how business continues as usual:
- Nov. 6, 2024: The Defense Logistics Agency orders 5 annular ball bearings from Rotron at $220 each -- to be shipped to the South Korean Air Force in Daegu, South Korea. (We don't know if the US taxpayer will be reimbursed by South Korea for these military aircraft parts.)
- Feb. 5, 2025: The DLA orders 23 items called "PROPIMAX,GUARD,AIRC" at $435 each. They're deemed a "CRITICAL APPLICATION ITEM". One website suggests this item is for the Navy's MH-60R helicopters, made by Sikorsky.
- Feb. 19, 2025: The DLA's aviation division orders one "FAN,TUBEAXIAL" at $7,896, to be sent directly to USS Lyndon B. Johnson (pictured), one of the Navy's three huge Zumwalt-class stealth destroyers. According to a 2018 General Accounting Office report, these ships cost around $8 billion each.
- May 5, 2025: The Pentagon orders 30 more annular ball bearings for the South Korean Air Force -- this time they're $270 each. A new middleman appears in this order: it's to go via OS 2 Corporation, another of the many firms that get fat from the huge amounts of money that swirl around military contracting.
- May 16, 2025: The Pentagon demands that Rotron send replacements for two motor stators which Rotron had sent under an earlier contract, as they were "found to be non-conforming with the terms of the contract".
- May 29, 2025: The DLA's aviation division orders 6 centrifugal fans at the bargain price of $14,930 each. Again OS 2 Corp also gets a piece of the action.
