I guess this was going to happen sooner or later but the fragrant honesty of those interviewed and the lackadaisical comments from BAE left me totally disgusted..
BusinessWeek tracked counterfeit military components used in gear made by BAE Systems to traders in Shenzhen, China. The traders typically obtain supplies from recycled-chip emporiums such as the Guiyu Electronics Market outside the city of Shantou in southeastern China. The garbage-strewn streets of Guiyu reek of burning plastic as workers in back rooms and open yards strip chips from old PC circuit boards. The components, typically less than an inch long, are cleaned in the nearby Lianjiang River and then sold from the cramped premises of businesses such as Jinlong Electronics Trade Center.
A sign for Jinlong Electronics advertises in Chinese that it sells "military" circuitry, meaning chips that are more durable than commercial components and able to function at extreme temperatures. But proprietor Lu Weilong admits that his wares are counterfeit. His employees sand off the markings on used commercial chips and relabel them as military. Everyone in Guiyu does this, he says: "The dates [on the chips] are 100% fake, because the products pulled off the computer boards are from the '80s and '90s, [while] customers demand products from after 2000."
Enjoy the magic of every sunrise.
Wonder at the sight of snow.
Appreciate the joy of living in the now.
Upon tomorrow live a new life for a new day.
I'm amazed that this problem stems from the pentagon willing to buy wholesale chips off the shelf to repair military equipment that is 10-20 years old, rather then directly from the manufacturers of the original equipment. sure it saves money, but...what? who thought that one up? i thought the whole point to military strength was to spend money on the cutting edge, not undermine it 10 years down the track with chips that potentially came from my ancient 386 PC or worse.
mental image: pilot in a fighter: "target confirmed...FOX-2",...pilot then presses trigger, trigger begins playing twinkle twinkle little star....
