By Marina Malenic
The Pentagon is expected to complete a long-awaited review this week that will influence future Air Force buys of mobility and tanker aircraft, Air Force sources said yesterday.
The Mobility Capability and Requirements Study (MCRS) is reaching the end of final general officer review, one official said last week. An unclassified summary is expected to be released shortly after the classified version is finalized, which could happen “any day now,” according to the source.
The MCRS will coincide closely with the release of the Quadrennial Defense Review, which is also nearing completion. In addition to analysis of both strategic and intratheater airlift needs, the mobility study is expected to make fresh recommendations on the Air Force’s aerial refueling tanker force mix.
The study is primarily geared toward analyzing future needs for mobility aircraft such as the C-5 Galaxy, C-130 Hercules and C-27 Spartan by using wargaming parameters, the source said.
Air Force officials have long said they do not expect the MCRS to recommend major changes in the mobility force mix. Last week, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz reiterated that the study is unlikely to produce major changes in Air Mobility Command’s fleet.
The study could, however, reveal fresh plans for the C-27J. The Air Force took over the Joint Cargo Aircraft program last year, under which it now plans to buy 38 C-27Js. When the air service shared program duties with the Army, a 78-plane purchase had been planned.
Meanwhile, top Pentagon weapons buyer Ashton Carter last month gave the service permission to finish the low-rate initial production portion of the C-5 Reliability Enhancement and Re-Engining Program (RERP), another Air Force official said.
Following a Dec. 18 Defense Acquisition Board meeting, Carter signed an acquisition decision memorandum that gives the Air Force permission to perform the RERP upgrade on three Lot-2 aircraft, begin materiel fabrication for five Lot-3 aircraft and start advance procurement of parts for seven Lot-4 aircraft, according to a defense official. A contract award is valued at some $400 million.
The Air Force expects to seek a full-rate production decision for the final 33 Galaxy aircraft that are part of the RERP effort in the fall.
Once the aircraft are fitted with new engines and other improvements, they receive a C-5M designation. The initial system development and demonstration aircraft are expected to complete operational test and evaluation this week, according to the official.
While all Galaxy aircraft are expected to receive a cockpit avionics upgrade, the Air Force plans to upgrade only the newer model C-5B aircraft in the RERP program. Air Force officials have said they would like to replace some of the older C-5 aircraft with newer C-17s. But lawmakers placed numerous restrictions in the Fiscal Year 2010 Defense Authorization Act on C-5 retirements. The MCRS is expected to again address the issue.