AOC improvements in the works

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Joel P. Dixon
  • AOC WS Modernization program office
HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. --  The Air Operations Center Weapon System program office is working to improve upon the system's current capabilities with more automated services and enhanced cyber security as it moves into its next phase.

Risk-reduction activities, including a successful preliminary design review, have driven AOC Increment 10.2 through Milestone B and into engineering and manufacturing development. After the recent successful Milestone B decision, the EMD contract option with Northrop Grumman Corp. was awarded at the end of October.

AOCs support Joint Force air component commanders in planning and executing missions for the air war. Currently, AOC operators perform 16 validated mission threads to accomplish their mission. In the operational baseline, operators must perform these mission threads by accessing and manually integrating data from more than 45 systems and applications. The upcoming improvements will facilitate machine-to-machine data transfer, reducing human error.

"This will improve the speed of command, improve quality and allow senior leaders to make more informed decisions," said Lt. Col. Kyle Reybitz, AOC WS program manager. "It will also significantly upgrade our security posture in the face of continually evolving cyber threats."

After the program completed its Milestone B Defense Acquisition Board and received a favorable Acquisition Decision Memorandum on Oct. 11, it moved into the EMD phase. This phase will focus on refining the pre-EMD prototype, integrating and upgrading command and control applications, and the fielding of 10.2 to three AOC sites required for initial operational test and evaluation.

"Milestone B is a critical decision point in any acquisition program's lifecycle. It represents the Air Force's decision to support this program going forward," said Reybitz.

The prime contractor established a preliminary design of the modernized AOC during the technology and development phase. The design incorporated 19 infrastructure subsystems and 26 mission subsystems to provide the framework for executing the AOC mission. This pre-EMD effort delivered five different incremental prototype system builds, each with design sprints adding new capabilities.

As the program enters the EMD phase, effort will be concentrated on maturing the design and preparing for two Warfighter Assessment Workshops. In the next WAW this spring, operators will perform hands-on scenarios to exercise the new system and provide opinions and suggested improvements. The program's baseline will be finalized at the critical design review, currently planned for spring 2014. This will be followed by developmental testing and IOT&E.

The 10.2 program is also benefitting from a recent significant engineering upgrade to the existing AOC 10.1 sustainment program. During the upgrade, hardware was updated and a number of applications were virtualized, reducing the system's physical footprint and modernizing its network infrastructure.

"The AOC WS 10.1 program produced a major sustainment modification that passed operational testing and has been successfully fielded to the geographic AOC sites," said Reybitz. "We are using this proven hardware infrastructure as the starting point for 10.2."

According to program officials, a detailed 10.1 to 10.2 transition strategy is being developed that ensures capabilities can be developed and fielded with minimal interruption to services.

"The program has formed a cohesive partnership between Air Combat Command, the program offices at Hanscom Air Force Base and Langley Air Force Base, and with the contractor," said Mike Canavan, AOC 10.2 program manager. "We successfully demonstrated to senior leadership that we were indeed ready for EMD. We're excited to begin this new phase and get this critical system to the operators."


Editor's note: Deborah L. Powers and Patty Welsh, 66th Air Base Group Public Affairs, contributed to this story.