U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren is intensifying scrutiny of defense contractors for resisting legislation that would expand the Pentagon’s ability to repair its own weapons and equipment, as lawmakers move to finalize the fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Reuters reported Monday.
In a November 5 letter to National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) President David Norquist, Warren accused the trade group of trying to undermine bipartisan reforms aimed at giving the military greater autonomy over maintenance and spare parts.
She called the group’s stance “a dangerous and misguided attempt to protect an unacceptable status quo of giant contractor profiteering.”
Under current rules, the Defense Department often must rely on original manufacturers such as Lockheed Martin (LMT), Boeing (BA) and RTX (RTX) to perform costly repairs, rather than allowing service members to 3D-print or locally manufacture replacement parts. The proposed NDAA provisions would require contractors to share technical data needed for in-house or field repairs, a change Warren says could save taxpayers billions and boost military readiness.
“Your organization’s attacks are based on unproven conjectures and self-serving projections,” Warren wrote, demanding that the NDIA disclose which member companies oppose the measures and how much money they have spent lobbying against them.
Both the House and Senate have advanced versions of the NDAA that include right-to-repair language, backed by lawmakers across parties, the Trump administration, veterans and hundreds of small businesses. The Pentagon has also directed the Army to ensure new contracts preserve repair rights for the government.
Warren cited findings from the Government Accountability Office showing that restrictive contracts have forced military crews to strip grounded aircraft for parts or wait weeks for manufacturer approval to perform basic maintenance. She pointed to one case in which a Black Hawk helicopter screen control knob, sold only as part of a $47,000 assembly, could be fabricated independently for about $15, Reuters reported.