Aging Avionics in Military Aircraft (2001)
Chapter: Front Matter
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NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20418
NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This is a report of work supported by Contract Number F49620-00-1-0174 between the United States Air Force and the National Academy of Sciences. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.
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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
National Academy of Sciences
National Academy of Engineering
Institute of Medicine
National Research Council
The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. William A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. William A. Wulf are chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.
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COMMITTEE ON AGING AVIONICS IN MILITARY AIRCRAFT
ROBERT L. CATTOI, chair, consultant, Dallas, Texas
NOEL LONGUEMARE, vice chair, Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology (retired), Ellicott City, Maryland
HENRY P. ARNOLD, BF Goodrich Aerospace, Vergennes, Vermont
WILLIAM C. BOWES, Litton Industries, Woodland Hills, California
STEPHEN N. BUSS, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Linthicum, Maryland
JOHN D. COSGROVE, Rockwell Collins (retired), Cedar Rapids, Iowa
FREDERICK H. DILL, IBM T.J. Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, New York
LLEWELLYN S. DOUGHERTY, Raytheon Systems Company, El Segundo, California
VALERIE J. GAWRON, Veridian Engineering Flight Research Group, Buffalo, New York
DAVID R. HEEBNER, Heebner Associates, McLean, Virginia
ELLIS F. HITT, Battelle, Columbus, Ohio
ANDREW J. KORNECKI, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, Florida
ROCKY J. PORZIO, Lockheed Martin Federal Systems, Owego, New York
GEORGE W. SUTTON, ANSER, Arlington, Virginia
WILLIAM G.T. TUTTLE, JR., Logistics Management Institute, McLean, Virginia
RAYFORD B. VAUGHN, JR., Mississippi State University, Mississippi
BRIAN T. WRIGHT, Rockwell Collins, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Liaisons from the Air Force Science and Technology Board
ROBERT A. FUHRMAN, Lockheed Corporation (retired), Pebble Beach, California
ALTON D. ROMIG, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Liaisons from the Boardon Army Science and Technology
PATRICK F. FLYNN, Cummins Engine Company, Inc. (retired), Columbus, Indiana
GEORGE T. SINGLEY III, Hicks and Associates, Inc., McLean, Virginia
Staff
BRUCE A. BRAUN, Director
JAMES E. KILLIAN, Study Director
GREG EYRING, Consultant
PAMELA A. LEWIS, Senior Project Assistant
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AIR FORCE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BOARD
ROBERT A. FUHRMAN, chair, Lockheed Corporation (retired), Pebble Beach, California
ANTHONY J. BURSHNICK, U.S. Air Force (retired), Springfield, Virginia
LYNN CONWAY, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
WILLIAM H. CRABTREE, consultant, Cincinnati, Ohio
EARL H. DOWELL, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
ALAN H. EPSTEIN, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
ALFRED B. GSCHWENDTNER, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
ROBERT G. LOEWY, Georgia Institute of Technology School of Aerospace Engineering, Atlanta
JOHN MICHAEL LOH, U.S. Air Force (retired), Williamsburg, Virginia
NOEL LONGUEMARE, Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology (retired), Ellicott City, Maryland
THOMAS S. MOORMAN, JR., U.S. Air Force (retired), McLean, Virginia
BRADFORD W. PARKINSON, Stanford University, Stanford, California
RICHARD R. PAUL, Boeing Company, Seattle, Washington
ELI RESHOTKO, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
ALTON D. ROMIG, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Staff
BRUCE A. BRAUN, Director
MICHAEL A. CLARKE, Associate Director
CHRIS JONES, Financial Associate
WILLIAM E. CAMPBELL, Administrative Coordinator
DEANNA SPARGER, Senior Project Assistant
REBECCA LUCCHESE, Senior Project Assistant
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Preface
Questions about the readiness of U.S. military forces to go into battle have received widespread attention in recent years, and the issue was hotly debated in the 2000 U.S. presidential campaign. Partly as a result of a slowdown in purchasing of new materiel in the 1990s, many weapon systems are showing their age, and their lifetimes are being extended beyond their original design lifetimes. This has led to increased maintenance costs and reduced mission-capable rates. The problem is especially severe with electronics systems, such as aircraft avionics, which increasingly depend on commercially available components that have a technology-refresh cycle as short as 18 months and an availability cycle of less than a decade.
This study was requested by the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition to address three areas:
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Provide a “heading check” on what the Air Force is doing to address the aging avionics problem.
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Provide suggestions for additional actions.
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Comment on the division of responsibility between government and industry for maintaining avionics systems.
In the course of its deliberations, the Committee on Aging Avionics in Military Aircraft received many briefings on the aging avionics issue from the perspective of the Air Force, Navy, Army, Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), and contractors. The committee also sought out the views of commanders of three Air Force Major Commands, as well as senior executives in the Air Force Secretariat. The committee found that more than 25 different organizations in the military services, OSD, and industry are already working on various aspects of the aging avionics problem. One of the contributions of this study will be to raise the awareness of concerned decision makers of related work being done in various other organizations and to facilitate meaningful coordination among them.
The committee greatly appreciates the support and assistance of National Research Council staff members James Killian, Pamela Lewis, and Carol Arenberg and consultant Greg Eyring in the production of this report.
Robert L. Cattoi, chair
Noel Longuemare, vice chair
Committee on Aging Avionics in Military Aircraft
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Acknowledgments
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the NRC's Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
Gen. George Babbitt, U.S. Air Force (retired)
Dr. John M. Borky, Tamarac Technologies, LLC
Lt. Gen. Gordon E. Fornell, U.S. Air Force (retired)
Dr. Nancy G. Leveson (NAE), Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mr. Robert N. Lutter, The Boeing Company
Mr. David W. Mineck, Kaiser Aerospace and Electronics Corporation
Dr. Eberhardt Rechtin (NAE), University of Southern California (retired)
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Raymond S. Colladay, appointed by the Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, who was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Research Council.
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Contents
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Tables and Figures
TABLES
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FIGURES
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Acronyms
ACAT acquisition category
AFMC Air Force Materiel Command
AFRL Air Force Research Laboratory
AVCOM avionics component obsolescence management
COTS commercial off-the-shelf
DMS diminishing manufacturing sources
DMS/OP diminishing manufacturing sources/ out-of-production parts
DoD U.S. Department of Defense
FAA Federal Aviation Administration
FY fiscal year
GATM global air traffic management
GIDEP Government Industry Data Exchange Program
GIG Global Information Grid
IPT integrated product team
IWSM integrated weapon-system management
JIAWG Joint Integrated Avionics Working Group
JSF Joint Strike Fighter
JTA Joint Technical Architecture
MDAP major defense acquisition program
Mil Spec Military Specification
MOSA modular open-system approach
OASD (C3I) Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence)
O&M operations and maintenance
OSD Office of the Secretary of Defense
PBR President's Budget Request
QAPR Quarterly Acquisition Program Review
R&D research and development
RDT&E research, development, test, and evaluation
RVSM reduced vertical-separation minimum
SAF/AQ Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition
SEI Software Engineering Institute
SPO system program office
TACTech Transition Analysis of Component Technology
TCAS traffic collision-avoidance system
TOC total ownership cost
USD Under Secretary of Defense
