The Acquisition system strikes again. It is a security issue and it is not apparent that either DOD or the defense industry understand that point of view. Lockheed Martin reports that the F-35 Fighter will exceed its stated initial operating capability (IOC) by several years. This is a bind for the Air Force in particular since the F-22 program is basically dead. The Air Force along with other service Program Managers in this joint program seem a bit on the uninformed side – or are not properly briefing their superiors. Allowing your boss, whether the Secretary of Defense or the Air Force chief of Staff to testify that all is well and then produce a 50% Nunn-McCurdy brief is simply amazing – remember the A-12? Though Lockheed-Martin certainly shares some of the blame for this situation, it is the insatiable desire for technology that is likely the major reason for all these delays.
Every new generation of weapons attempts to push the technology envelope, either at the urging of DOD or by the industry’s own initiative. The DOD-Industry partnership have fielded some truly incredible leaps in technology over the years, a prime L-M example is the SR-71. It is a fragile and selfish relationship, very much a “what have you done for me lately” attitude prevails. DOD wants more; industry blames DOD for delays due to immature technology. There seems to be no actual, realistic analysis of technological risk.
This analysis is key. Is it important to field the platform in a certain time and add a technology as it matures and becomes viable or just roll the dice and go all in on every new feature? Whether it is CVN-X, DDG-1000 or the F-35, it looks like the DOD-Industry partnership decided to go all in with as many new technological risks as possible. This is not a forcing function the acquisition community should use or DOD should promote. Regrettably it would also seem a leadership issue.
F-35 Program History
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/aircraft/f-35-program.htm
The Hill reacts to IOC date Slip
http://www.dodbuzz.com/2010/02/22/hill-reacts-to-f-35-ioc-shift/
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