Air Force Depot Maintenance: Information on the Cost-Effectiveness of B-1 and B-52 Support Options
Abstract
The Department of Defense (DOD) spends about $13 billion-5 percent of its $250 billion fiscal year 1997 budget on depot maintenance activities. Over $4 billion of this amount is spent on Air Force systems and equipment. Most of the Air Forces depot maintenance work is performed at five depots that are located at its five air logistics centers. In 1990, the Air Force determined it could not meet the full depot maintenance requirement for 23 B-1B aircraft per year at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center without adding personnel or offloading other aircraft workload to contractors. The center awarded a sole-source contract to Rockwell International Corporation, the B-1B manufacturer, to perform programmed depot maintenance on about 5 aircraft per year, leaving 18 aircraft to be repaired at the air logistics center. At the time, the Air Force anticipated that contractor support would decrease and eventually the entire annual B-1B workload would be repaired at the center. The original depot maintenance contract (1-year contract with 4 option years) expired at the end of fiscal year 1995. At that time, the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center was ready to assume the entire workload. However, because of uncertainties surrounding the 1995 base closure and realignment process and the resulting need to maintain two sources of repair, a contract extension was awarded to Rockwell for fiscal year 1996. Subsequently, the Air Force awarded an additional contract extension for five aircraft for fiscal year 1997, with an option for the same number in 1998.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 1997
- Accession Number
- AD1180500
Entities
People
- James F. Wiggins
- John D. Strong
- Julia C. Denman
- Larry J. Junek
- Penney M. Harwell
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office