Consolidation of maintenance processes for expeditionary air force operations

To meet the challenges associated with the new security environment, the Air Force has developed Air and Space Expeditionary Force (AEF) concepts. These concepts substitute forward presence of airpower with a force that can deploy quickly from the continental U.S. in response to crises anywhere in the world, commence operations immediately upon arrival, and sustain operations as needed. To help the Air Force evaluate alternatives for enabling these concepts, we have developed a modeling framework that evaluates support options with respect to risk, costs, transportation resources, time and other metrics. Our analysis of the Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infra-Red Night (LANTIRN) system illustrates the types of analyses we have conducted for senior Air Force leaders to demonstrate the potential of new support procedures to facilitate expeditionary operations. Some of our recommendations have been implemented, supporting overseas-deployed aircraft, and were tested during the recent air campaigns over Serbia and Afghanistan.