National Aeronautics and Space Administration<br />Office of Inspector General<br />Washington, DC 20546<br /><br /><br />October 9, 2003<br /><br /><br />RELEASE 2004-001<br /><br /><br />HOWMET CORPORATION'S VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE RESULTS IN $4 MILLION <br />SETTLEMENT<br /><br /><br /> On September 30, 2003, the United States Department of Justice and <br />Howmet Corporation (Howmet), a subsidiary of Alcoa, agreed to a <br />Settlement Agreement and Release. Under the Agreement, Howmet will pay <br />the United States $4 million to settle the government's claim for <br />monetary relief arising from Howmet's voluntary disclosure that it had <br />provided castings to the government, which were not tested in <br />accordance with military standards and specifications.<br /><br /><br />The affected parts have been installed in numerous pieces of military <br />equipment including Apache helicopters, Blackhawk helicopters, Cobra <br />helicopters, F-18 military fighters, F-15 military fighters, C-17 <br />military transports, Javelin missiles, M-1 tanks, and Hellfire Two <br />missiles. Affected parts have also been installed in two spare <br />gyroscope systems for the International Space Station (ISS). However, <br />the spare gyroscopes have not been installed in the ISS.<br /><br /><br />A defense contractor who voluntarily discloses its own violations to <br />the government may be admitted to the U.S. Department of Defense <br />Voluntary Disclosure Program. If admitted into the program, the <br />contractor must fully and accurately disclose the extent of its <br />violation. As part of the disclosure process, the contractor may <br />conduct an internal investigation, which is subject to the government's <br />review, verification, and investigation. In return for its self-<br />disclosure, the contractor may be exposed to only double damages (not <br />treble) for any false claim, and the government may waive fines and <br />penalties under the False Claims Act.<br /><br /><br />On September 27, 1999, Howmet voluntarily disclosed to the U.S. <br />Department of Defense suspected misconduct regarding its casting of <br />parts at its plants located in Montreal, Quebec; Hillsboro, Texas; <br />Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; and City of Industry, California. In <br />accordance with the Voluntary Disclosure Program, Howmet officials <br />conducted their own internal review and provided a disclosure report <br />outlining the suspected misconduct. Thereafter, Howmet assisted the <br />government's investigation.<br /><br /><br />Special Agents of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, NASA <br />Office of Inspector General, and United States Army Criminal <br />Investigative Command investigated the facts and circumstances of the <br />disclosed misconduct. The Defense Contract Audit Agency provided audit <br />support. Assistant United States Attorney Charles Roberts, Northern <br />District of New York, handled the prosecution.<br /><br /><br />For more information on this release, please call Madeline Chulumovich, <br />Executive Officer, NASA Office of Inspector General at (202) 358-0615.<br /><br /><br /> *** End ***<br /><br /><br />Please do not contact NASA Office of Public Affairs for information on<br />Office of Inspector General releases.<br /><br /><br />For additional information on the NASA Office of Inspector General,<br />including published reviews, audit reports, inspection/assessment reports,<br />press releases, and other publications, please access our web site at:<br />http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/oig/hq<br /><br /><br />Report Crime, Fraud, Waste, Abuse, and Mismanagement to the NASA OIG<br />Hotline at: 800-424-9183, TDD 800-535-8134.