The Effect of Age on the M1 Tank: Implications for Readiness, Workload, and Recapitalization
Abstract
Many of the Army's major weapon systems were procured as part of a major investment cycle that ended in the early 1990s. They are expected to remain in use until about 2030, when the Army has fully fielded its next generation of forces. Thus, large portions of some fleets are already more than 10 years old, with little prospect for near-term replacement. The Army has grown increasingly concerned about sustaining an acceptable level of operational readiness in its aging fleets. In response, it has embarked on recapitalization programs to rebuild (make like new) and upgrade (replace an old component with a new version, to enhance capability) equipment. In this endeavor, a critical question is how to scale and design recapitalization programs so that they can achieve the desired level of operational readiness. RAND Arroyo Center sought to help answer this question by conducting a statistical analysis of the relationship between age and equipment readiness on a key item of equipment: the M1 Abrams tank. The results of this analysis appear in "The Effects of Equipment Age on Mission-Critical Failure Rates: A Study of M1 Tanks." The study investigated the relationship between age and mission-critical failures and how other factors such as use and location affected the failure rate in M1 tanks. It also determined which subsystems and individual parts factor into the relationship between age and failures. (1 figure)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2004
- Accession Number
- ADA426641
Entities
Organizations
- RAND Corporation