AFMC closes door on successful Fiscal Year 2023

  • Published
  • By Marisa Alia-Novobilski
  • Air Force Materiel Command

The Air Force Materiel Command ended Fiscal Year 2023 on a high note, with record small business and contracting successes, and 99.9% obligated across financial portfolios.

“This was a challenging year, but our team executed flawlessly, ensuring we would end the fiscal year in a solid position for FY24,” said Brig. Gen. Frank Verdugo, AFMC Comptroller. “We have an amazing team of experts here at AFMC who work diligently throughout the year to ensure our no-fail critical missions for the Department of the Air Force succeed across all mission sets.”

Below is a summary of the big AFMC portfolio accomplishments in Fiscal Year 2023.

Operations and Maintenance

AFMC executed $3.1 billion in Operations and Maintenance funds in FY23, a 10.7% increase in funding over FY22. The command was able to source $88 million for Unfunded Requirements identified during the mid-year portfolio review. UFRs sourced include:

  • $48 million - Combat Ready Airmen
  • $7 million – Core network equipment, infrastructure updates
  • $2.9 million - War Reserve Materiel Sustainment
  • $1.3 million – Human Systems Lab Operations
  • $7.2 million – Commanders Accelerated Initiatives
  • $2.7 million – Air Force Uniform Office
  • $1.3 million – Multi-spectral Test and Training Environment
  • $1 million – Air Force Primary Standard Lab
  • $31.7 million – Support of Ukraine Operations

Investments

On the investment side, the Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation and Procurement portfolio team continued to support platform procurement and modernization efforts across the enterprise. The team sustained F-35A and KC-46A procurements and executed $188.5 million in inflation adds (8121 funds) to support the purchase of twenty-four F-15EXs. The RDT&E budget invested heavily in nuclear modernization efforts, air superiority (Next Generation Air Dominance; hypersonics), and the building of the Advanced Battle Management System to connect the Joint Force.

Working Capital Fund

The AFMC Working Capital Fund executed $17.8 billion in support of business operations enterprise-wide. The WCF closed out fiscal year 2023 with six months of depot carry over for FY24, which is well within the maximum authorized threshold.

Centralized Asset Management

The Centralized Asset Management team executed a $21 billion portfolio, which included $13.4 billion in Air Force Active Duty Weapon System Sustainment, $1.6 billion in Space Force Weapon System Sustainment, and $6 billion in active duty flying hour budgets. The CAM team also processed $571 million in reimbursements to Department of Defense and other agency partners, to include NASA, Foreign Military Sales partners, F-35 cooperative partners, and more.

CAM team efforts also drove the approval of a last-minute $154 million reprogramming request in support of readiness and leveraged program group funding flexibility to help source $666 million in UFRs for critical mission needs.

Small Business

The AFMC Small Business program had a record year in FY23, with $9.7 billion in awards, representing a $1 billion increase over FY22. The command’s previous record in this area was $9.3 billion, spurred by pandemic-related actions.

Of the $9.7 billion spent this year, $3.49 billion was awarded to Small Disadvantaged Businesses, providing opportunities for socially and economically disadvantaged individuals to participate in government contracting opportunities. The command also awarded a record 239 Phase III Small Business Innovation Research contracts valued at $1.3 billion. This was a 56% increase over FY22 when 153 Phase III contracts were awarded and represents a big step-forward in transitioning SBIR-developed technology to meet mission needs.    

Contracting

The AFMC Contracting Team obligated $64.3 billion this year and completed 58,600 Federal Acquisition Regulation-based contract actions in FY23. These numbers represent 72% of the total Department of the Air Force spending and 52% of all Air Force contract actions. The team also completed 3,400 non-FAR-based contract actions, obligating $3.09 billion in this area. Both FAR-based and non-FAR-based actions represented increases of FY22, with FAR-based obligations increasing by $6.9 billion in FY23 and non-FAR-based obligations increasing by $1.7 billion, representing an 81% increase.

While the numbers are noteworthy, the Contracting Team also made big strides across the mission set. The team revised the contracting officer warrant database, improving the validity rate for 15,267 records to 100%. The Contract Data Specialist career field expanded, with the addition of 79 positions across the cadre at multiple grade levels. The team also continued CON-IT migration efforts and established a new dynamic workforce dashboard to track vacancies and attrition rates across the career field.

Installation and Mission Support

The Air Force Installation and Mission Support center ended the fiscal year 99.9% obligated, executing a $9.1 billion portfolio. The team started FY23 with $243 million in Base Operating Support UFRs and a $184 million bill for Natural Disaster Recovery carried over from FY22. The team was also challenged with emergent, must-pay requirements for utility increases, Ebbing Field Air National Guard Base, Typhoon Mawar recovery and more.

Despite the challenges, the AFIMSC team successfully resourced 78 installations and four Primary Support Units worldwide. A $265 million Facilities Sustainment, Restoration and Modernization congressional add at midyear along with a $93 million reimbursement for Typhoon Mawar response and construction orders helped cover the outstanding bills and must-pay requirements. The team also executed $365 million in funding for Military Family Housing, to include securing additional funding for privatization inspection efforts and reprogramming funds to cover higher utility bills.

FY24 Outlook

Fiscal Year 2023 was a record year across all portfolios for AFMC, and financial management teams were able to leverage smart programming and resourcefulness to address challenges across the mission set. As Fiscal Year 2024 gets underway, AFMC teams are prepared to execute to ensure readiness for all critical missions across the enterprise.

“I could not be prouder of our AFMC teams as they finished a challenging FY23 and face an equally, if not more challenging FY24. Regardless of the hurdles, I am confident we will ensure our warfighters have what they need to execute our critical missions for the Air Force,” said Verdugo.