ABSTRACT
Preface The operational availability (Ao) of warfighting materials and systems is key to the U.S. Department of Defense’s (DoD) ability to prevail on the fields of battle. History has shown that the military that can launch the most weapons (or sorties) wins the battles. Consider the following theoretical scenario:
The Navy has 148 of a certain type of weapon for performing a mission that is considered essential to national defense. The Navy needs all 148 of these weapons to be mission-ready to satisfy mission requirements. Originally, over 200 of these weapons were procured, because it was generally believed that some ±50 would be down for scheduled and corrective maintenance. Currently, only 75 to 80 are available. Why? Because repair parts are in short supply for this aging weapon system, which causes a 50% operational availability (Ao) condition. Failure rates have increased over time and many needed parts are no longer manufactured unless special ordered. The cost of parts is high, and lead times are long. These weapons still perform the mission well at a cost of $10 million each per year to maintain and operate. System and parts obsolescence, along with diminishing manufacturing sources or resources, is expected to become worse each year.
