Analysis of the Programming of Facilities to Support Deployment of Major New Weapon Systems

摘要

The primary purpose of this thesis was to evaluate the effectiveness of the process by which facilities are programmed to support major new weapon systems. The study used personal interviews to obtain the perceptions of fifty-one authorities in the fields of systems acquisition and facilities acquisition at the five organizational levels, from the base level to HQ USAF. Data collection was concentrated in four major areas: (1) the B-1 bomber, (2) the Peacekeeper missile, (3) Policy and Programs, and (4) Simulators. Results of the study indicate that five areas are perceived as being major concerns: (1) timely identification of facility requirements, (2) the timing of the Military Construction Program in relation to the systems acquisition cycle, (3) funding concerns, (4) communication and coordination problems, and (5) political concerns. Some significant differences in the perception of problem areas also appear to exist between organizational levels. The conclusions and recommendations of the study were based on both the results of the interviews and an extensive review of the current literature relating to the systems and facilities acquisition processes. These results indicate that although some corrective actions can be accomplished within the existing system, many of the problems would require legislative or organizational changes to more closely integrate the systems and facilities acquisition processes.