Operational Support Airlift: Analysis of Joint Staff Estimate of Military
Wartime Requirements (Letter Report, 06/21/96, GAO/NSIAD-96-157).

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO determined whether the Joint
Chiefs of Staff (JCS) estimate of wartime operational support airlift
requirements was excessive, focusing on how changes in flight frequency
assumptions affected the calculation of aircraft requirements.

GAO found that: (1) JCS overstated its estimate by 6 aircraft, because
only 385 aircraft would be needed, rather than 391; (2) JCS used a
different capability assumption when computing the Pacific Command's
(PACOM) requirement for long-range aircraft; (3) this requirement was
based on the assumption that long-range aircraft average 1.5 flights per
day in PACOM; (4) that assumption would lead to the estimate that JCS
calculated; (5) 55 fewer aircraft would be needed if the the estimates
were calculated based on two flights per day, rather than three; and (6)
the estimates are highly sensitive to changes in assumptions about
requirements.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  NSIAD-96-157
     TITLE:  Operational Support Airlift: Analysis of Joint Staff 
             Estimate of Military Wartime Requirements
      DATE:  06/21/96
   SUBJECT:  Military aircraft
             Defense contingency planning
             Logistics
             Operations analysis
             Combat readiness
             Military airlift operations