The U.S. Air Force announced July 13 that it has terminated its contract with Northrop Grumman [NOC] to modernize the Air Operations Center Weapon System (AOC WS), saying it plans to pursue an alternative approach aimed at developing and fielding AOC capabilities more quickly.
The Air Force said the alternative involves a process called the AOC Pathfinder, which will allow airmen to provide feedback directly to developers throughout the life of the system. The Air Force expects the process to reduce the time it takes to develop software from years to weeks.
“The Air Force is working through funding options with Congress for the new approach,” the service said in a statement.
Commanders use the AOC WS to plan, execute, monitor and assess air, space and cyberspace operations. The modernization effort, called AOC 10.2, was supposed to improve the Air Force’s ability to integrate application updates and enhance system security, but it has been plagued by cost overruns, schedule delays and performance problems.
“AOC WS 10.2 failed to complete a second round of developmental testing and the associated operational assessment activities,” the Pentagon’s chief weapons tester wrote in his fiscal year 2016 annual report. “The test was canceled at the half-way point due to the number and severity of deficiencies identified.”
According to a May report by the Defense Department’s inspector general, research and development costs for the AOC 10.2 nearly doubled to $745 million.
Northrop Grumman, which was awarded the AOC contract in 2013, had no immediate comment on the contract termination.
In a joint statement, Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, commended the Air Force’s decision, saying it “is an important demonstration of what accountability in the acquisition process can and should look like.”