United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2002-04-30 monographic deposited born digital GA 1.13:GAO-02-542 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-542 P0b002ee1803a09a7 f:d02542 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-24 GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-542 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-542 GAO-02-542 Air Force personnel Defense contingency planning Fighter aircraft Personnel management Strategic planning Internal controls Air Force Expeditionary Aerospace Force Concept Other Written Product A02927

Defense Plans: Plan to Better Use Air Force Squadrons Could Yield Benefits but Faces Significant Challenges (30-APR-02, GAO-02-542). To reduce the deployment burden on Air Force personnel by spreading deployments more evenly across its force and increasing the predictability of deployments, the Air Force implemented its Expeditionary Aerospace Force concept in 1999. By dual-tasking some fighter squadrons the Air Force could fulfill two requirements as the 2010 Concept envisions. Although significant challenges could impede the ability to maximize these benefits, the Air Force has not specifically analyzed what is needed to implement dual-tasking by 2010. Dual-tasking would result in more efficient use of squadrons and a greatly reduced need to task squadrons above and beyond the Air Force's goal of one 90-day deployment every 15 months. Dual-tasking would provide theater commanders with the same number of aircraft to meet requirements as under current practice; however, the aircraft would come from fewer squadrons. Because a larger proportion of a squadron's aircraft would be used to meet requirements, and because dual-tasking uses fewer squadrons to meet requirements, the need to repeatedly task the same squadrons would be reduced. The number of squadrons needed for more than one 90-day period over a 15-month period would decline from 26 squadrons to five. More training would be required under dual-tasking. Yet, the Air Force has not quantified this increase, assessed how it would manage the increase, nor projected how it would support such an increase either logistically or in its budget. To support deploying a greater portion of dual-tasked squadron's aircraft, more of the authorized maintenance positions would have to be filled. Currently, more than half of the maintenance specialties at the wings GAO analyzed were undermanned, and some were manned at less than 60 percent. Such shortages already pose difficulties, since wing officials are limited in what they can do to make up for the shortages. Dual-tasking could cause maintenance personnel to be deployed more frequently than desired unless more of these vacant positions are filled. In addition, almost all of a squadron's pilots would be needed to meet dual-tasking requirements. This will pose challenges in managing pilot deployments. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-542/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-542.htm GAO-02-542 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-542 Other Written Product GAO-02-542; Defense Plans: Plan to Better Use Air Force Squadrons Could Yield Benefits but Faces Significant Challenges; Air Force personnel Defense contingency planning Fighter aircraft Personnel management Strategic planning Internal controls Air Force Expeditionary Aerospace Force Concept Title 31 Section 720 31 U.S.C. 720