Costs of Flying Units in Air Force Active and Reserve Components.

摘要

The relative costs of operating and supporting Air Force active- and reserve-component units is an important consideration in programming the mix of forces for various missions. Unfortunately, there are no generally accepted or well-documented methodologies for compiling the costs and output measures to be included in these comparisons. This report describes the development of one such methodology and applies it to exploring force mix alternatives in several weapon systems. Our objective is to provide an approach that is sufficiently comprehensive, uses accessible data, and yields replicable results. The analysis underlying this report was based on cost, aircraft inventory, and flying hour data pertaining to Air Force active- and reserve-component flying units from FYs 2006 through 2010. This report explores the relationships among these variables and draws conclusions for their implications regarding the cost- minimizing mix of active and reserve force structure. The Air Force Reserve conducted a detailed review of this report and does not agree with its methodology, analysis, or findings. The Air Force Reserve believes that the conclusions in this paper are not supported by Office of the Secretary of Defense force planning utilization policy and that they underestimate the reserve component s contribution as an operational force. Due to its concerns associated with the report s cost methodology, utilization data, and the over- reliance on the significance of cost per operational flying hour as a single metric, the Air Force Reserve recommends prudence when applying the insights noted in this report.