	Background

Since 1991, DynCorp Aerospace Technology has provided support services for State’s counternarcotics program in the Andean region and, occasionally, in Central America. The Office of Aviation and DynCorp fly aerial eradication missions from several locations in Colombia. The Office of Aviation and DynCorp are collocated with the Colombian Army Aviation Brigade in Tolemaida. Office of Aviation’s Contractor Oversight and Evaluation Measures Met Requirements

The Office of Aviation’s oversight of DynCorp met both State’s overall contracting requirements and requirements specified in the contract with DynCorp. The Office of Aviation is collocated with DynCorp at the main operating base and in each country, thus allowing Office of Aviation officials to monitor DynCorp’s operations on a daily basis. Office of Aviation Ensured Safe Operations but Needs to Address Certain Safety and Security Concerns

To oversee and evaluate the safety of contractor operations and physical security of the aviation program’s facilities, Office of Aviation officials relied on daily interaction with DynCorp’s country managers and forward operating location managers, frequent site visits, periodic reports as part of the trimester performance evaluation, and internal and external reviews. Overall, these assessments judged aviation program operations to be safe and physically secure; however, some concerns have not been resolved. In addition, the Colombia National Police have increased the number of staff assigned to the airfield. Recommendation for Executive Action

To improve the safety and security of the Office of Aviation’s forward operating locations and headquarters office in Colombia, we recommend that the Secretary of State direct the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs to document what remains to be done to address the suggestions and recommendations made by ICAP and RSO and when action is expected to be completed. It stated that the report findings are essentially factual and correct and that it will continue to pursue improvements where needed.
What GAO Found

The Andean region continues to cultivate, produce, and export almost all of the world's cocaine as well as an increasing amount of heroin, according to the State Department. Colombia is the source of 90 percent of the cocaine entering the United States and about two-thirds of the heroin found on the East Coast. Although coca cultivation estimates have fallen by about two-thirds in Bolivia and Peru since 1996, increases in coca cultivation in Colombia have offset much of these successes. Under State's Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, the Office of Aviation, through a contract with DynCorp Aerospace Technology, supports foreign governments' efforts to locate and eradicate illicit drug crops in the Andean region. In recent years, DynCorp has maintained and operated aircraft to locate and eradicate drug crops in Colombia, trained pilots and mechanics for the Colombian Army Aviation Brigade, and provided logistical and training support for the aerial eradication programs of the Colombian National Police and manual eradication programs in Bolivia and Peru. The Office of Aviation met both State's overall contracting oversight requirements and more specific oversight and evaluation requirements in the DynCorp contract. Office of Aviation officials interacted daily with DynCorp managers at the main operating base and in each country, made regular site visits to each country, and reviewed DynCorp's internal reports. The Office of Aviation ensured that its aviation program operated safely and was physically secure, but it can do more. The Office relied on monthly reports and the trimester performance evaluations, as well as periodic surveys and independent assessments of DynCorp's operations and facilities. Overall, these reports have concluded that the aviation program was safe and that physical security was adequate. However, several matters of concern have not been resolved.