Exhibit 16 May 17, 2002 Office of the Chief Accountant Securities and Exchange Commission 450 Fifth Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20549 Dear Sir/Madam: We have read the 4 paragraphs of Item 4 included in the Form 8-K dated May 17, 2002 of VSE Corporation filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and are in agreement with the statements contained therein except for the references to Ernst & Young LLP within the first and last paragraphs. Very truly yours, /s/ Arthur Andersen LLP - ----------------------- Arthur Andersen LLP By David F. Hess cc: Mr. Thomas R. Loftus, CFO, VSE Corporation