Pentagon contractor's 9,400% profit on a half-inch metal pin is challenged

[DeminPennswoods]

30. After reading the article, these items are used on military aircraft

Even a little pin can be a critical item in the aircraft design. Without seeing the actual IG finding, it's hard for me to say what exactly is the situation here, but it does look like this is some sort of omnibus contract, perhaps a BOA (basic ordering agreement) or DVD (direct vendor delivery) with the prime vendor. CICA (competition in contracting act) is the law of the land so DLA would have had to advertize for proposals before awarding the contract. If DLA did a sole source award, they would have had to justify it in writing.

Also, DLA was never set up to manage parts unique to military aircraft. They were built for bulk purchasing of hardware - nuts, bolts, etc. But years ago, the individual services were ordered to transfer many parts that had complex management issues to them. It created a lot of problems and appears if that might still be the case.