Aircraft Modifications: Assessing the Current State of Air Force Aircraft Modifications and the Implications for Future Military Capability

摘要

The purpose of this dissertation is to expand the analysis of aircraft modifications to include an aggregate perspective of all recent modifications. The objective is to formulate good policy in order to help direct the future of modernization within the Air Force. Specifically, it will use a dataset constructed during this thesis describing all aircraft modifications from the years 1996 through 2005 to examine the impact of aging on modifications costs, the efficiency of procurement and installation planning, the implementation of safety modifications, and some expectations for the future of aircraft modifications. This summary will state the four research questions addressed in this dissertation as well as a brief explanation of the methods and conclusions related to each question. What are the historical trends that have preceded the present environment for aircraft modifications in the Air Force. Changing circumstances are a common occurrence for the United States military. For the Air Force in particular, things are changing in such a way that demands a response from the organizational structure. These changes include: new aircraft, a new standard of evolutionary acquisition, and aging aircraft. Each of these changes indicates that the Air Force modification policy will be increasingly important in the future.