Tactical Intelligence

Army Needs to Reconsider and Test All-Source Analysis System Alternative Gao ID: NSIAD-94-49 March 7, 1994

The All-Source Analysis System is an Army program to automate the processing and analysis of intelligence data from all sources. The Army is developing the system in several stages, or blocks. Block I is to be fielded over the next 2 years, while block III is to begin about 1998 and be fielded after the year 2000. The Army pegs the cost to develop, procure, and operate the system over its 20-year life cycle at about $5 billion. This report evaluates (1) the readiness of block I for fielding; (2) whether further development of block II is the most cost-effective way to improve system capabilities; and (3) whether alternatives are available in lieu of developing block II.

GAO found that: (1) block I is not ready for fielding because its operational testing was inadequate and configuration tests did not include performance, reliability, and deployability information; (2) although the Army is planning to make major changes to correct block I software upgrades so that the system can be more operationally effective, ASAS availability will be limited; (3) the Army's development of the Warlord intelligence processing workstation could provide an alternative to fielding and upgrading block I and offer greater operational advantages than block I; (4) the Army is considering whether to incorporate Warlord capabilities into block I; (5) the Army prematurely awarded the ASAS block II development contract before completing block I operational and field testing, agreeing on proposed block I software and hardware upgrades, completing a block II cost and operational evaluation, and establishing a performance baseline to evaluate block II progress; and (6) the Army does not know whether block II development is the most cost-effective method to provide improved capabilities, and has not fully assessed the potential benefits and cost-effectiveness of integrating existing alternative systems into the block II program.

Recommendations

Our recommendations from this work are listed below with a Contact for more information. Status will change from "In process" to "Open," "Closed - implemented," or "Closed - not implemented" based on our follow up work.

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