Evaluation of U.S. Air Force Preacquisition Technology Development (2011) / Chapter Skim
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2 reports, failed programs, and programmatic breaches in cost, schedule, and technical performance -- that the Air Force is currently struggling to incorporate technology in its major systems acquisitions successfully, it is important to note that the path toward technological supremacy has never been a smooth one.3,4,5 Describing the technological travails that he faced 75 years ago while building the 1 Giulio Douhet.
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, and DoD and Air Force competitive prototyping policies to comprehend their impact on the execution of pre-program of record technology development efforts. · Propose any changes to the Air Force workforce, organization, policies, processes and resources, if any, to better perform preacquisition technology development.
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On the basis of this framework, the committee developed a number of find ings and recommendations that are presented in Chapters 2 through 4; the full set of recommendations is provided below.8 In keeping with its statement of task, the committee studied the current state of Air Force technology development and the environment in which technology is acquired, and then it looked at best practices from both government and industry. Because the resulting recommendations are in all cases within the power of the Air Force to implement, the committee chose 8 The findings and recommendations retain their original numbering regardless of where they ap pear in the text: for example, Recommendation 4-1 is the first recommendation in Chapter 4.
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RECOMMENDATIONS Requirements There is very little new in the management of technology development. Impor tant lessons have been learned before by the Air Force, and, regrettably, many seem to have been forgotten.
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communities -- can focus their attention jointly on critical technology development questions and then make tough strategy and resource calls efficiently at a level where the decisions are most likely to stick, the Air Force should consider adopting a structure similar to the Navy's S&T Corporate Board and Technology Oversight Group and the Army Technology Objectives Process and Army S&T Advisory Group. A committee-developed notional organization for Air Force consideration (Figure S-1)
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s . a i r f o rc e P r e ac q u i s i t i o n t e c h n o lo g y d ev e lo P m e n t s 6 of Science and Technology Board Vice Chief of Staff and SAF/AQ Air Force Headquarters key staff, Major Command Vice Commanders, and Product Center Commanders Develops a science and technology investment strategy and allocates funding for execution Applied Technology Council A3/5, SAF/AQ MD, DSAF/Space Air Force Headquarters key staff, Major Command A5/8s, and Product Center CV/XRs Prioritizes 12 S&T IPT efforts and makes recommendations to the Board Supports the Board's strategy and executes objectives S&T IPTs Nuclear Air Global Rapid Special Global Deterrence Superiority Precision Global Operations Integrated Operations Attack Mobility ISR Command Space Cyberspace Personnel Building Agile and Superiority Superiority Recovery Partnerships Combat Control Support FIGURE S-1 Notional science and technology governance.
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The committee observed many examples from industry, NASA, and the AFSPC in which disciplined and objective adherence to rigorous technology readiness principles led to the successful incorporation of new technology into major systems. The Air Force as a whole, however, has yet to demonstrate full commitment to TRL principles.
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One approach is to establish collaboration forums similar to the Ground Robotics Consortium and the Army Armament Research, Development, and Engineer ing Center's National Small Arms Center. The Right People The literal decimation of the Air Force acquisition workforce over the past two decades is well known.
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One presenter to the committee spoke of a program to which the contractor had assigned 80 engineers, who stood stunned as a government review team arrived with 137 participants, most of them junior military and civilian employees.13 As was described in the 2008 NRC report Pre-Milestone A and Early-Phase Systems Engineering: A Retrospective Review and Benefits for Future Air Force Systems Acquisition: The DoD management model is based on a lack of trust. Quantity of oversight has replaced quality.
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Nevertheless, beginning in some way to rebuild the sense of trust that was once present among the participants in these processes would seem a logical place to begin. R01861 AF PTD -- CS4 final.indd 10 2/18/11 2:25 PM
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