Air Force reorganizes acquisitions team

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  • By Tech. Sgt. David A. Jablonski
  • Air Force Print News
WASHINGTON --  Air Force officials announced a major reorganization of the acquisition management structure Aug. 20.

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper and Air Force Secretary Dr. James G. Roche approved the reorganization of the service’s aircraft, weapons, and command, control and combat support acquisitions programs. The change streamlines decision-making, improves speed and credibility and increases accountability.

The policy clarifies the responsibilities of program executive offices and product center commander, according to a memorandum from the leaders. It removes organizational conflicts and builds off Air Force Materiel Command’s evolving acquisition-enterprise concept.

As part of the reorganization, service officials will:

-- Dual-role the Air Force’s three product center commanders as program executive officers. The commanders will be responsible for executing the programs.

-- Gather all but two of the Air Force’s aircraft programs under a single executive office. The Joint Strike Fighter will keep its separate office, and a new one will be created for the F/A-22 Raptor.

-- Bring all non-space Air Force acquisition programs under the new office structure and eliminate the designated acquisition commander position at the product and logistics centers.

-- Assign a general officer or senior executive service civilian as the deputy for acquisition execution for each of the three offices. That person will also serve as a product center commander. A separate deputy for support will manage the day-to-day operations of the center.

-- Maintain a small support staff in Washington, D.C., to help coordinate among Air Force headquarters, the Defense Department and Congress.

The commander of the Aeronautical Systems Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, will be the executive officer for aircraft. The commander of the Electronic Systems Center at Hanscom AFB, Mass., will be the executive officer for command, control and combat support. The commander of the Air Armament Center at Eglin AFB, Fla., will be the executive officer for weapons.

Dr. Marvin Sambur, assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, remains the service acquisition executive for all non-space programs. Product executive officers continue to report to him. In their role as center commanders, the three product center commanders will continue to report to the commander of Air Force Materiel Command. Under Secretary of the Air Force Peter B. Teets is responsible for the acquisition of space programs.

“Our acquisition system, fueled by our great acquisition professionals, (has) produced the best weapons systems in the world,” Sambur said. “But, the processes we use to acquire these systems can and must be improved to reduce cycle times and to increase the credibility of our cost, schedule and performance promises. I’m convinced this new alignment will help us get to where we need to go. The overall goal is to make process better to get what is needed so that the warfighters know that the process is tuned to (them) as our (customers).”

Gen. Lester Lyles, AFMC’s commander, was also confident in the change.

“It’s been more than a decade since the current structure was put in place and, while it’s served us well, it simply is not agile enough to meet today’s rapidly changing and unpredictable threats,” Lyles said. “This new structure will allow us to deliver capabilities more quickly and to look across our acquisition enterprise to ensure that we are making the best use of our resources.”

In the new structure, air logistics center commanders will no longer be designated acquisition commanders. They will, however, remain highly engaged in the acquisition process because of the important maintenance and supply planning for support of new systems, according to officials. The centers will still be key players in sustainment planning as new systems are developed and acquired. They will retain their traditional roles in the sustainment, maintenance overhaul and repair of fielded weapons systems and manage the purchasing and supply chain.

The structure is expected to be in place in about two months, according to officials. An implementation plan is being developed and will identify the size of the Washington support staff, any required transfer of people to the product centers and other logistical and organizational issues.