NCMS Project #: 142375
Problem: The Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment Program Office (PMA-251) manages one of most critical production and sustainment operations to ensure the United States (U.S.) Navy’s aircraft carriers can perform their mission. It oversees a seven- to ten-year development cycle and must support each system over its 50-year operational life. This long build timeline and burden on the electronics supply base. Current approaches of cannibalization and reallocation from production parts to address obsolescence cannot sustain the fleet in the long-term.
Benefit: A comprehensive obsolescence strategy can be directly applied to many commercial businesses with long design timelines and product lifecycles, such as automotive, aircraft, and maritime systems. It will equip leaders with options to make faster sourcing decisions when an issue of obsolescence arises and help in the planning and design of future components to help avoid urgent obsolescence issues.
Solution/Approach: A comprehensive obsolescence strategy will equip the Navy with a plan to identify issues and effectively deploy resources to react to arising critical system risk stemming from the supply base. The strategy will incorporate best practices from across commercial and defense industries to provide defined actions for finding parts and better preparing for obsolescence of specific Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) and Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) electronic systems.
Impact on Warfighter:
- Streamline re-design process
- Reduce maintenance and sustainment costs
- Proactively address material shortages
DOD Participation:
- Aircraft Launch and Recovery System Program Office (PMA-251)
- Program Executive Office for Tactical Aircraft Programs (PEO(T))
- PEO Aircraft Carriers – Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) class (observer)
- PEO Attack Submarines – Virginia (SSN-774) class (observer)
- PEO Strategic Submarines – Columbia (SSBN-826) class (observer)
- PEO Ships – Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) class (observer)
Industry Participation:
- A.T. Kearney Public Sector and Defense Services, LLC (Kearney)
- NCMS
Benefit Area(s):
- Cost savings
- Repair turnaround time
- Mx avoidance & reliability
- Mx management improvement
- Reliability improvement
Mx Focus Area:
- Enhanced Inspection
