Test Program

Abstract

The Test Program provides consolidated Missile Defense Agency (MDA) capabilities and resources to support the management and execution of Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) and Element-level testing. With the evolution of the BMDS, testing needs have expanded beyond those of the individual Elements to include testing of BMDS Critical Engagement Conditions (CEC) and Empirical Measurement Events (EME) to anchor models and simulations. The Directorate for Test (DT) is responsible for all BMDS testing which relies on BMDS Systems Engineering to provide the system test objectives to define the test architecture. DT plans and executes BMD system test events and develops the necessary test policy, test plans, and test infrastructure to conduct an effective test program. Test activities are grouped into four major areas: 1) Support to Operations, which provides for the Test Functional Management Office, flight and ground testing support, target launch operations, and Operational Test Agency assessments; 2) Infrastructure Support to Flight Test and Ground Test Programs, which sustains, and modernizes the core infrastructure assets required to support the BMDS System and Element-level flight and ground testing; 3) Flight Test and Ground Test Infrastructure Development, which provides for Integrated Master Test Plan infrastructure development, auxiliary sensors development, and component ground test lab development; and 4) Common Test Support, which provides for test planning and design, test data management, ground test lab support, test readiness and training, and the Pacific Range Support Team (PRST). The goals of this budgetary project are to support and improve a robust testing program and to enhance modeling and simulation efforts to provide, in conjunction with flight and ground testing, confidence to the Combatant Commanders that the missile defense system works. The MDA test program, along with the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Operational Test Agencies (OTA), conducts a rigorous review of BMDS models and simulations (M&S) to determine the data needed to verify, validate, and accredit the M&S efforts. Working with the Services, OTA, and with the support of the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E), the test program was restructured to improve confidence in the missile defense capabilities under development and ensure the capabilities transferred to the Warfighter are operationally effective, suitable, and survivable. Test Engineering supports the analysis process by providing event leadership, tools, and processes to conduct pre- and post-mission system level analysis for all BMDS flight and ground test events. Analysis is performed and reported using the Joint Analysis Team (JAT) process. Pre-mission analysis provides essential risk reduction analysis used to optimize conditions for successful accomplishment of the primary mission objectives. Post-mission analysis is performed to assess the primary and secondary test objectives and to identify mission-specific performance enhancements or failures that were observed. The BMDS performance assessment strategy is to develop M&S and compare their predictions to empirical data collected. The data collected through flight and ground testing is used to validate M&S accuracy, rather than physically testing all possible combinations of BMDS configurations, engagement conditions, and target phenomena.

Document Details

• Document Type: Project
• Publication Date: Oct 01, 2013
• Source ID: MD04_0603888C_4_0400_PB_2013

Tags

Readers

• Aerospace Test and Evaluation
• Missile Defense Systems.