Simulation Model for Determining the Effect of Reliability and Maintainability on Maintenance Manpower Requirements and Mission Capabilities

摘要

The purpose of this thesis was to analyze the effects of reliability and maintainability (R&M) on mission capable aircraft, sorties flown, and maintenance manpower. This was accomplished by developing a simulation model of the aircraft maintenance system for a generic tactical fighter squadron. The model can be used by AF/LE-R or other organizations that are required to make R&M decision related to tactical aircraft or wish to gain additional insight into the relationship between R&M and aircraft performance. Care should be taken when using the manpower results of this study. The manpower impacts suggested are only applicable to the work centers and scenerios modeled and cannot be extrapolated to other areas of the maintenance complex. The study addresses the following questions: 1) What effect does reliability, maintainability, and crew size have on sortie generation capability and the average number of mission capable aircraft available; 2) What impact does improved system reliability have on maintenance manpower requirements; and 3) What effect does specialty consolidation have on maintenance manpower requirements.