A new travel style for Pentagon VIPs? It's SLICC

By David Morgan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - They sound like first-rate in-flight accommodations -- leather chairs, a 37-inch flat-screen monitor, bed, couch, table -- all the comfort a traveling VIP could want.

But the amenities intended for top U.S. defense and military officials come with a price tag of $4.4 million, and counting.

That, plus the fact some money for the facilities has been set aside under a bill meant to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, has exposed the already scandal-hit U.S. Air Force to charges of extravagant waste.

The Project on Government Oversight, or POGO, a Washington-based non-profit group, revealed details about the accommodations known as a Senior Leader In-Transit Conference Capsule, or SLICC, in a letter this week to Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

"In a time of war, it is critical for senior officials to visibly prioritize the needs of the men and women on the front line," POGO told Gates.

"Yet an egregious failure of leadership has come to our attention that involves breathtaking extravagance when every dollar needs to be wisely spent in a time of war."

Air Force officials had no immediate comment on POGO's allegations, while a spokesman for Gates said he was unaware of the letter.

The POGO letter follows the forced departure last month of the Air Force secretary and chief of staff over two high-profile scandals involving mix-ups in the U.S. nuclear arsenal.