In April, through Resource Management Decision 802, Defense Secretary Robert Gates moved the C-27J program and its related direct support mission from the Army to the Air Force. Since April, the Air Force and Air Mobility Command have taken a serious approach to building the program, officials said.
Currently, the C-27J program office at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, is standing up while at the same time the Joint Program Office at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala., is staying open through approximately the end of fiscal 2010 (Sept. 30, 2010) to promote a smooth transition.
"The program is in transition from an Army-led joint program to a sole Air Force program," said Lt. Col. Gene Capone, AMC's C-27J test manager at the Joint Program Office. "Making a switch like this is no small affair, especially at this phase in the acquisition process. Because the Army lost all fiscal year 2010 C-27J funding due to RMD 802, the Air Force is funding the Army to continue leading the program through completion of Multi-Service Operational Test and Evaluation."
The Air Force will field 38 C-27Js, operated by the Air National Guard. Two of the 38 programmed C-27Js are currently going through qualification and operational testing with a final basing plan forthcoming.
In the development of the C-27J for use by the U.S. military, officials have been putting the C-27J through rigorous evaluation. Through this effort, they validate key performance parameters, prove airdrop capabilities, determine defensive systems effectiveness, certify communications interoperability and ascertain aeromedical compatibility of the aircraft. Additionally, they hold live-fire testing and evaluation of key system components during this thorough production qualification testing.
"Then the aircraft goes into Multi-Service Operational Test and Evaluation to determine its capabilities in an operationally relevant environment," Colonel Capone said.
The C-27J is an "extremely rugged" aircraft, designed for austere environments. Although it has yet to complete its testing, officials say it should thrive in the "dirt."
"Think of the C-27J as a 'mini-Herc' -- it looks like and acts like a C-130, but it is about half the size (3.5 pallet positions versus 6 to 8 pallets for the C-130)," Colonel Capone said. "This smaller size brings efficiency of scale to the Air Force's portfolio of airlifters."
Pilots testing the plane at Redstone Arsenal are waiting until testing is completed before they talk more about the plane's capability, but Colonel Capone did say "it is very powerful and agile."
"It flies a lot like a C-130, but with a bit more power for its weight," he said. "Of course, as with most airplanes the pilots who fly the aircraft love it -- myself included."
Headquarters AMC officials at Scott AFB, to include Maj. Gen. Brooks Bash, Director of the Air, Space and Information Operations Directorate, say the work to build the C-27J's capability to fully support the Army's needs in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility is also continuously progressing.
"The Secretary of Defense gave us the C-27J and its mission to the Air Force and we are 100 percent committed to making this work," General Bash said.
Col. Bobby Fowler, also from AMC's Air, Space and Information Operations Directorate, said the command is developing the C-27J's Concept of Employment, or CONEMP, for the Air Force's plans to support the Army's direct support mission program.
A formal test is taking place from October through December in Iraq to gather information on this new Air Force mission. The test's purpose is to validate the CONEMP and to ensure the Air Force is ready to implement this mission in 2010, Colonel Fowler said. "This test will help us work out the command and control structure of the direct support mission and help us to validate requirements."
Officials note that even with the on-going direct delivery CONEMP test, the Air Force is firmly meeting the mission of directly supporting the warfighter. An example of that support, especially in Afghanistan where U.S. and coalition forces operate in a land-locked country with austere terrain, is through airdrops -- a record amount of airdrops.
In June, a record 2.8 million pounds of cargo was airdropped, only to be beaten in July with 2.9 million, in August with 3.6 million, and again in September with 3.6 million pounds. That's more than 12.9 million pounds of much-needed combat supplies directly delivered to ground forces during the recent surge into Afghanistan for Operation Enduring Freedom.
The record number of pounds delivered also means record numbers of airdrop bundles delivered. As an example, in 2007, the Air Force airdropped 5,675 cargo bundles to troops in Afghanistan. In 2009, with an average of about 1,300 bundles a month, the Air Force is on pace to airdrop more than 18,500 bundles this year -- more than tripling the pace of two years ago. This is accomplished with C-17 Globemaster III and C-130 Hercules aircraft.
In 2009, mobility Airmen have also fulfilled other quick-response, direct support requirements within the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. In the first seven months of 2009, the Air Force met more than 750 distinguished visitor movements and more than 250 urgent aeromedical evacuation movements from both Iraq and Afghanistan.
That support is also highlighted in the intra-theater airlift for Iraq and Afghanistan by the Air Force. Through August, in both Iraq and Afghanistan, AMC aircraft have moved more than 815,000 passengers. In August alone, AMC aircraft moved more than 73,000 passengers in Iraq -- many of those Army Soldiers. In the same month for Afghanistan, AMC aircraft moved more than 27,000 passengers with many of them being Army Soldiers as well.
Army Sgt. Angel Quiles Ramos, from Charlie Battery, 1st Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery deployed to an undisclosed base in Southwest Asia, said the support he receives from the Air Force at his deployed base is "critical."
"They provide food, security and water," Sergeant Ramos said. "We don't have to get water because they bring it to us. If anything breaks, we call them and they come to fix it. This is critical because the Air Force provides everything so we can do the mission."
In receiving the C-27J program and its mission, officials say there is a lot to do as more and more C-27s come into the inventory. However, they say the foundation of this is to build trust and responsiveness.
A concept like this will take time and effort, but most importantly it will also require feedback from the forces, Colonel Fowler said. AMC and Air Force officials plan to continuously review and update the C-27J and the direct support processes using inputs from field commanders until it is incorporated into joint doctrine.
S.T. Sturkol (AMC)
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