Simulation Modeling and Analysis of Air Force Depot Engine Repair During Normal and Increased Operational Tempos
Abstract
Maintaining an adequate level of aircraft availability through Agile Combat Support (ACS) is crucial for the Air Force to perform its mission. During normal day to day operations, demands for depot repair including spare parts and maintenance man-hours typically fall within a range supportable with current assets and capabilities. However, with increased flying operations during a conflict, demand at the depot level may likely exceed current capacity for timely support, resulting in backorders for spares and increased turnaround times. This thesis develops a discrete event simulation of the F-16 engine repair network to investigate the impact on engine availability (a major driver of aircraft availability) from three key factors: the spare engine modules inventory levels, the induction rate of failed modules, and the repair turnaround time for the engine modules. Our baseline simulation captures the F-16 engine repair network at a top level for normal day to day operations. We then insert a range of increases in operational tempo in our simulation and analyze the effects on the engine repair network. Incorporating different policies for replenishing depleted spares levels from increased demands allows us to explore the responsiveness of industrial base output in maintaining aircraft engine availability.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 24, 2016
- Accession Number
- AD1053976
Entities
People
- Changsung Kim
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology