Review of the U.S. Department of Defense Air, Space, and Supporting Information Systems Science and Technology Program (2001) / Chapter Skim
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Executive Summary
Executive Summary
Pages 1-6
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The request to determine "in a qualitative sense the level of investment required" suggested to the committee that the study's sponsor recognized the inherent difficulty of making any hard and fast recommendations on level of investment and therefore wanted the committee to use its best judgment in recommending an appropriate level of investment to secure an adequate technology base for DoD. Based on committee members' knowledge gained from their extensive experience with DoD and Air Force S&T and on the information reviewed during the study, the conclusions and recommendations presented in this report reflect the committee's qualitative rationale and collective judgment.
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From page 2... ...
Accordingly, the committee believes that the Air Force, instead of reducing S&T investment, would have been better served by reorienting its existing investments and possibly increasing them in some areas to deal with threats that have arisen since the Cold War. A key factor in Air Force S&T investment decisions is the effectiveness of S&T representation and advocacy at the corporate policy and decision-making level of the Air Force.
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From page 3... ...
The strength of S&T representation in the Air Force is weakened by the relatively small size of the S&T program compared with the Air Force' s total program and compared with the broad scope of responsibilities held by the assistant secretary for acquisition and the AFMC commander. The relatively small size of the S&T investment affects perceptions of its value and the amount of attention paid to it.
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From page 4... ...
At roughly $2.5 million per year, the Air Force investment in in-house basic research for information systems is not enough to ensure support for real advances in in-house projects or to maintain the scientific expertise of the in-house workforce. The Air Force budget for applied research and advanced technology development in information systems accounts for only about 5 percent of the total Air Force S&T budget.
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From page 5... ...
Finally, to conduct a high-quality S&T program, the services need to be able to retain and recruit the highest-quality personnel. As the Defense Science Board and Air Force chief scientist studies pointed out, the post-Cold War drawdown, the growing economy based on high technology, and Civil Service rules governing the management and recruiting of government personnel have combined so as to almost ensure that the highest-quality DoD S&T personnel are the first to be lost.
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From page 6... ...
The Air Force can also benefit from carefully examining the special roles accorded the Chief of Naval Research and the Office of Naval Research in the Department of the Navy to consider how these roles could be adapted to the AFRL commander/ TEO and AFRL to strengthen Air Force S&T. These options or others the Air Force identifies can address remaining weaknesses in Air Force S&T representation and advocacy and build upon the recent successes of the Air Force.
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