This article is hilarious!  Like Doctor McCoy once said in disgust,
"The bureaucratic mentality is the one constant in the universe."

Enjoy this glimpse into The Way Things Were... and still are!

-Joe-

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WHY THE ARMY STILL DOESN'T HAVE CALCULATORS
by Richard Kirka (847)

"65 Notes", V3 N6 P2 (July 1976)

Back in the late 60's, the Army Artillery branch at Fort Sill was
going to send out bids to electronics companies to build about 1000
pocket calculators for field use by artillery units. Just as the
bids were to go out, HP announced the HP-35, which exceeded their
wildest dreams. So they cancelled the bids and said they wanted
the HP-35's.

Even though the total cost of the calculators would have been
$400,000 (and even less in large quantities to the government),
strenuous tests had to be performed on the calculator because of
Army procurement policy. After two years of testing, and several
hundred thousand dollars, the HP-35 was declared fit for purchase.

However, by that time, the HP-35 was out of production. But now
Fort Sill wanted the HP-45 instead, for the same original price as
the HP-35. Now the HP-45 was put through the exact same tests as
the 35. When it was approved, it, too, was out of production.

So the Army spent probably $1 million and years to test a produc-
tion model that they were going to spend less than $400,000 on.
And the product isn't even being made any more. So now artillery
units still don't have portable calculators because by the time the
bureaucracy gets around to approving the items, they are no longer
in production. That is why I used my HP-65 when I was in the
National Guard, and awed everyone from Generals on down with it.