Strategy for Long-Term Systems and Technology Advancement
Abstract
Many challenges have emerged within the past five years for both military customers, as they plan for and purchase aircraft, and for manufacturers, in producing these aircraft. Opportunities to develop new models of military rotorcraft have decreased with steady reductions in military budgets and the post cold-war environment. These budget reductions, coupled with quantum advances in computing technologies that have advanced ground-based and airborne processing power, have shifted the focus of military customers from new model development to increased aircraft performance via system upgrades and training. The emphasis on meeting long-term operational needs with these upgraded systems and the training required to optimize their use has resulted in an imperative to change acquisition and implementation strategies for both the aircraft customer and the prime manufacturer. This paper focuses on the impact of these strategies on the rotorcraft industry, as follows: Systems Engineering. The architecture of aircraft mission equipment packages must be carefully planned in order to provide the capability of rapid and cost-effective modifications and upgrades. Avionics architectures have long supported highly federated mission processing furnished by suppliers with highly proprietary technical solutions. These complex closed subsystems cannot be modified or upgraded without considerable expense, and soliciting equivalent functionality from other suppliers is cost-prohibitive. Re-engineering the supply chain process, scrutinizing avionics make-buy decisions, and concentrating systems engineering activities early in development programs can aid in satisfactorily and predictably meeting the long-term operational needs of both the military customer and the manufacturer.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 2000
- Accession Number
- ADP010307
Entities
People
- E. C. Vaught
- L. B. Giles
Organizations
- Bell Flight