The Air Force Can Reduce Its Stated Requirements for Strategic Airlift Crews

Maintaining more crews than necessary to fly the C-5 and C-141 strategic airlift planes is costly and unjustified. The Air Force has determined that it needs four crews for each of these aircraft, but due to efforts to preserve the service life of the C-5 by limiting the flying hours of the fleet, only 3.25 aircrews are presently authorized for each C-5. The Air Force has developed and uses a computer model simulating the operations of the strategic airlift system under wartime conditions to determine crew needs. However, a number of factors the Air Force uses are unrealistic and tend to overstate crew needs.

GAO analyzed model simulations made by the Air Force and noted that during the first 45 days of an emergency, the period of highest demand, the utilization rate attained with a crew ratio of 3 to 1, with no flying hour limits imposed, was comparable to the rate attained with a 4 to 1 crew ratio with flying hour limits imposed. Where no flying hour limits were imposed, certain aircrews exceeded the 125 hours within 30 days limit. This indicated that a reduced crew ratio warrants serious consideration. A reduction of the aircrew ratio on from the currently authorized 3.25:1 to 3:1 for the C-5, and from 4:1 to 3:1 for the C-141, would lower the Air Force's annual funding requirement by as much as $105 million for the strategic airlift operational fleet if only active duty personnel were reduced. The Air Force omitted the effects of aircraft attrition in estimating required crews. At least three extra crews become available when each plane is lost. The Air Force indicates the extent of fatigue varies among aircrew positions; does not consider ground times at home stations to perform aircraft maintenance in its latest model simulations; assumes that all required crewmembers are fully qualified, onboard, and available for flying duties; and assumes, in its computer model, that crews must perform staff duties as well as flying airlift missions.

Recommendations

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