The military is wasting tens of millions of dollars on satellite communications

America's military depends on satellites. Without them, commanders would have trouble coordinating troops or piloting unmanned drones halfway around the world. But now a federal report finds that the government is likely overpaying the commercial partners who supply some of these satellite capabilities. A substantial chunk of the Pentagon's satellite communications contracts are probably priced too high, according to the Government Accountability Office.

The military's own policy requires satellite communications contracting to be done through the Defense Information Systems Agency, or DISA, according to the GAO. But, fed up with the office's lengthy process and inflexible contracts, other parts of the military have basically gone rogue, whipping up their own contracts with outside providers. As a result, some 32 percent of the Pentagon's commercial satellite budget is negotiated outside regular channels, the GAO found. While that tactic might be more convenient, the normal DISA contracts are on average 16 percent cheaper, the GAO said in a report. The most recent data available show that the military paid more than $1 billion for satellite capacity in 2011, according to GAO. That year, about $280 million worth of satellite capability was bought outside the DISA process. If the GAO is correct, then the military could have gotten that same service for about $45 million less.