A Study of Possible Logistics Paradigm Changes to Better Meet Warfighter's Needs

Currently, some Air Force logistics leaders have stated that even though the Air Logistics Centers (ALC) have been consolidated, they are still not as effective, as measured by time savings, cost savings, or system reliability as they can be. JV2020 even alludes to this need for change as a requirement for the future of our forces. Therefore, this research proposes to identify and evaluate possible substitutes to some of the current logistics programs that affect aircraft availability including alternatives to depot maintenance and also, how to better move repair parts through the system to meet the warfighting vision of JV2020. This will be accomplished by looking at AFSOC's Depot Agile Repair Team (DART) program on the MH-53 helicopter, the Navy's H-60 helicopter, C-5 Lean Logistics concept, and the Army's Accelerated Logistics concept. The study found a common thread among all these programs - a paradigmbreaking change in how to meet warfighters' needs and maintain cost effectiveness. The two helicopter programs both point to the need for keeping aircraft more operationally available and this is done by performing some depot-level tasks at the unit level. The DART concept has proven highly effective in increasing aircraft availability while also reducing costs. Also, by looking at the Lean Logistics and Accelerated Logistics concepts, these demonstrated another way to increase aircraft availability by moving replacement parts through the system more effectively.