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August 20, 2020 | International, Aerospace

To get more female pilots, the Air Force is changing the way it designs weapons

WASHINGTON — In 2022, the U.S. Air Force will take delivery of the F-15EX, a new and improved version of the nearly 40-year-old F-15E Strike Eagle.

But for all of the modern advances of the new jet, only 9 percent of women in the Air Force currently meet the body-size standards for piloting the legacy F-15 and possibly also the new EX variant, potentially blocking highly qualified pilots from flying a platform that will be in operation for decades to come.

Like the vast majority of the Air Force's aircraft and aircrew equipment, the F-15 was designed to meet the anthropometric specifications of a male pilot in 1967. But in an Aug. 4 memo, the Air Force mandated that future weapons programs use current body size data that reflects the central 95 percent of the U.S. recruitment population — a move meant to make pilot and aircrew jobs more accessible to women and people of color.

Air Force acquisition executive Will Roper, who signed off on the changes, said there is a strategic imperative for opening the door to a more diverse pool of pilots and aircrew.

During a war with a near-peer, technologically advanced nation like China, the U.S. military will have to contend with a well-trained, highly educated force that might outnumber its own, he said. By fielding weapon systems that can only be used by a smaller portion of the U.S. population, the Air Force could be shutting out some of its most promising potential pilots or aircrew.

“The human factor is a delineator and it likely will be against an adversary like China, where I believe we will have a greater propensity to trust the operator in the seat, to delegate more, to empower more and take greater risk in that delegation,” Roper told Defense News in an exclusive Aug. 6 interview.

“All well and good when you're a country that's going to face a country with a population that's four times your own by the end of this decade,” he said. “But if we begin with a recruitment population that we've artificially halved because of how we design our cockpits and workstations, we've just doubled our work, and now we make every operator in the seat have to be eight times better than the counterpart they will face in a nation like China.”

The new guidance directs the Air Force Lifecycle Management Center to conduct a study that will solidify a more inclusive anthropometric standard that would include 95 percent of the U.S. population eligible for recruitment in the U.S. Air Force.

But until that wraps up, all new-start Air Force programs must be designed with cockpits, aircrew operating stations and aircrew equipment that accommodates eight anthropometric data sets. These eight cases use measurement data from the Centers for Disease Control and represent a range of body types including individuals who are short in stature, have short limbs or have a long torso.

AFLCMC's Airman's Accommodations Laboratory will also run a three-year study that will develop separate anthropometric standards for career enlisted aviators, who perform specialized jobs onboard military aircraft including flight engineers, flight attendants and loadmasters. Currently, career enlisted aviators also must meet the 1967 anthropometric standards.

‘A hidden barrier'

The legacy design parameters — which stem from a 1967 survey of male pilots and measure everything from a pilot's standing height, eye height while sitting, and reach — have effectively barred 44 percent of women from being able to fly aircraft unless they receive a waiver, with women of color disproportionately affected, the Air Force stated.

Even after a waiver is granted, the pilot will remain disqualified from certain platforms regardless of his or her aptitude. Then, when future requirements are defined for new platforms or equipment, the systems are usually designed to meet the existing pool of pilots, creating a self-perpetuating problem.

“It is a hidden barrier with multiple layers,” said Lt. Col. Jessica Ruttenber, an Air Force mobility planner and a leader of the Women's Initiative Team that advocated for the change in anthropometric standards. “People are trying to do the right thing, but the barriers are baked into legacy policy. And without even knowing it, they're kind of cut and pasting the same standard.”

Ruttenber said the new guidance addresses the root of the problem by establishing new design specifications — ensuring platforms are engineered to accommodate a wide range of body sizes from the start of the development process, rather than papering over the problem with waivers after the fact.

“[For] the next inter-theater airlift that is going to replace the C-130 or C-17, we can't get the anthropometric data wrong or women are still going to be eliminated 30 years from now. The C-130 and C-17 still eliminate one out of three women from flying it,” she said.

For more than a year, the Women's Initiative Group worked with Chief Master Sgt. Chris Dawson, the career field manager for the Air National Guard's career enlisted aviators, on trying to garner funding for an anthropometric study for CEAs.

“There were so many communities we had to coordinate with that we realized really quickly that this has to come from the top down or we're not going to be as successful,” Ruttenber said. After meeting with Roper, the Women's Initiative group was granted $4 million for the study.

Ruttenber, a KC-135 pilot, remembers being pulled out of her first pilot training class in 2005 because her physical examination indicated that she didn't meet the standing height requirement of 5-foot-4 by a fraction of an inch. She then sought a waiver that would allow her to fly.

“The process was different back then. I had to drive from base to base and get measured in each cockpit in an attempt to get an exception to policy. I went to Charleston and I got measured in a C-17, and then I went to Little Rock and got measured in a C-130,” she said. “I got measured in the KC-135 and so on and so on and so on.”

Since then, the Air Force has made the process to obtain a waiver less arduous, and it recently removed the initial height requirement — although some platforms still require pilots to meet the 5-foot-4 standard. Newer aircraft such as the F-35 joint strike fighter and the T-7 trainer currently under development will also accommodate a wider height and weight range.

However, Ruttenber pointed out that the specifications for legacy aircraft will remain a hurdle for the progression of female pilots.

“Even if the F-35 is 97 percent accommodating for women, I still can't get there because the T-38,” which is used for fighter pilot training, “has a 41 percent accommodation envelope for women,” she said.

Roper said he is working with defense contractors to see whether there can be modifications made to legacy platforms — or upgraded versions like the F-15EX — that will accommodate operators with a wider range of body sizes.

But whether those changes are ultimately made will depend on if they are technically feasible and funding is available for design changes.

At the time of the Aug. 6 interview, Roper had already spoken to some defense industry executives — including those from Lockheed Martin — about the new guidance and planned similar phone calls with Boeing and Northrop Grumman officials over the coming days. The reaction from industry so far has been “very positive” but “very surprised” that such bias still exists, he said.

However, Roper acknowledged that more work has yet to be done.

“Changing the policy is one thing. Changing the platforms is another. And that's going to require cost to do. My next job, aside from designing future systems differently — which we'll do — is to find options to bring systems into greater compliance with the new policy and then to advocate tooth and nail for the funding needed to do it,” he said. “The litmus test for the Air Force long term has got to be balancing accommodation with the technology for future platforms.”

https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2020/08/19/to-get-more-female-pilots-the-air-force-is-changing-the-way-it-designs-weapons/

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    February 27, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

    Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - February 25, 2020

    ARMY Palantir USG Inc., Palo Alto, California (W56KGY-20-D-0005); and BAE Systems Information and Electronic SYS INT INC, San Diego, California (W56KGY-20-D-0006), will compete for each order of the $823,263,105 firm-fixed-price contract to upgrade/replace components found in the Distributed Common Ground System-Army. Bids were solicited via the internet with six received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 24, 2027. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Herndon, Virginia, was awarded a $42,088,702 hybrid (cost-no-fee, cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-plus-incentive-fee, firm-fixed-price, fixed-price-incentive) modification (P00054) to contract (W58RGZ-17-C-0014) for contractor logistics support services for government-owned fixed-wing fleet performing Special Electronic Mission Aircraft missions. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Herndon, Virginia, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 31, 2020. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $42,088,721 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity. Leidos Inc., Reston, Virginia, was awarded a $19,653,151 modification (P00023) to contract W52P1J-18-C-0002 to provide Class V munitions supply support for all ammunition stocks accounted for by 1st Sustainment Command (Theater) to U.S. military/government components, Department of Defense agencies, and, as required, coalition forces in the Central Command Area of Responsibility. Work will be performed in Kuwait City, Kuwait, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 28, 2021. Fiscal 2020 operation and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $19,653,151 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity. Unisys Corp. Federal Systems, Reston, Virginia, was awarded a $14,029,965 cost-no-fee, firm-fixed-price contract for an 18-month bridge to continue support for the Army Enterprise Service Desk. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in Augusta, Georgia, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 25, 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $14,029,965 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity (W52P1J-20-C-0010). A. WBE-CCI JV One LLC,* Itasca, Illinois, was awarded an $11,877,000 firm-fixed-price contract for construction of a pre-engineered metal hangar with conventional construction for adjacent support shop, administrative and non-destructive inspection testing spaces. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work will be performed in Klamath Falls, Oregon, with an estimated completion date of March 9, 2021. Fiscal 2018 military construction, Army National Guard funds in the amount of $11,877,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Property and Fiscal Office, Salem, Oregon, is the contracting activity (W50S8Z-20-C-0001). PAS MRO Inc.,* Irvine, California, was awarded a $9,787,000 firm-fixed-price contract to overhaul UH-60 tip caps. Bids were solicited via the internet with eight received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 25, 2025. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-20-D-0026). NAVY Deloitte Consulting LLP, Arlington, Virginia; Boston Consulting Group Federal Corp., Bethesda, Maryland; Whitney, Bradley & Brown Inc., Reston, Virginia; Mid-Atlantic Technical and Executive Consulting LLC,* Arlington, Virginia; and CACI Inc., Federal, Chantilly, Virginia, are awarded a cumulative not-to-exceed $249,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contracts for the Navy's System-Level Cost Analysis with Total Ownership Cost Analysis initiative. The competitive ordering period for both firm-fixed-price or cost-plus-fixed-fee type orders shall not exceed five years. Work will be performed at contractor and vendor facilities as determined on individual orders and is expected to be completed by February 2025. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $15,000 will be obligated at time of award to fulfill the minimum guarantees of the IDIQs and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with seven offers received. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (N00024-20-D-2425, N00024-20-D-2431, N00024-20-D-2432, N00024-20-D-2433, and N00024-20-D-2434). BAE Systems Land & Armaments L.P., Sterling Heights, Michigan, is awarded a $113,548,696 modification to exercise options for the fixed-price-incentive (firm target) contract line item numbers 4001 and 4005 portions of a previously awarded contract (M67854-16-C-0006). This modification is for the purchase of 26 amphibious combat vehicles and other associated production costs. Work will be performed in York, Pennsylvania (60%), Aiken, South Carolina (15%), San Jose, California (15%), Sterling Heights, Michigan (5%), and Stafford, Virginia (5%), and is expected to be completed in April 2022. Fiscal 2020 procurement (Marine Corps) funds in the amount of $113,548,696 will be obligated at the time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The contract was based on full and open competition with the solicitation publicized on the Federal Business Opportunities website with five offers received. The option contract line item numbers were included within that contract and are being exercised in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.217-7 option for increased quantity-separately priced line item. The Marine Corps Systems Command, Quantico, Virginia, is the contracting activity (M67854-16-C-0006). Vertex Aerospace LLC, Madison, Mississippi, is awarded a $23,925,125 modification (P00005) to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, cost contract (N00421-19-D-0031). This modification exercises the option to provide contractor owned and operated aircraft to Navy fleet customers, foreign military sales customers, and contractors as well as Department of Defense and other government agencies in support of the Contracted Air Services (CAS) program. The CAS program provides airborne threat simulation capabilities to train shipboard and aircraft squadron weapon systems operators and aircrew on how to counter potential enemy electronic warfare and electronic attack operations in today's electronic combat environment. Work will be performed in Virginia Beach, Virginia (50%); Coronado, California (40%); and Kauai, Hawaii (10%), and is expected to be completed in February 2021. No funds are being obligated at time of award; funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. L3Harris Technologies Inc., Palm Bay, Florida, is being awarded a $14,693,123 modification to exercise priced options to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract issued by the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command. This modification increases the value of the basic contract by $14,693,123; the new total value is $61,180,747. This modification provides for the exercise of firm-fixed-price options for Commercial Broadband Satellite Program Unit Level Variant (ULV) hardware production units. ULV provides terminal-to-shore, space and terrestrial connectivity to significantly increase throughput for commercial satellite communication and provides redundancy for military satellite communications. Work will be performed in Palm Bay, Florida, and is expected to be completed by August 2020. Fiscal 2019 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy), and fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2020 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $14,693,123 will be obligated at the time of award and will not expire at the end of the fiscal year. The Naval Information Warfare Systems Command, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N00039-14-C-0041). DCS Corp., Alexandria, Virginia, is awarded a $10,649,613 modification (P00027) to a previously awarded cost reimbursable, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract (N00421-17-C-0043). This modification provides for the planning and execution of test efforts for aircraft and weapons components through a Milestone C decision to include developmental and operational test and evaluation efforts associated with modifications to existing commercial-off-the-shelf and non-developmental items, which require engineering, design, integration, test and evaluation. This modification also provides contractor services support in administration, engineering and management functions in support of the Naval Test Wing Atlantic, Naval Air Systems Command and the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland, and is expected to be completed in February 2021. Working capital (Navy) funds in the amount of $3,062,000 and fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $812,739 will be obligated at time of award, $812,739 of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Progeny Systems Corp.,* Manassas, Virginia, is awarded a $9,913,382 cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order (N68335-20-F-0068) against basic ordering agreement (N68335-18-G-0039). This delivery order provides for continued maturation of the Expeditionary Mission Planning System. Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (65%) and Middletown, Virginia (35%), and is expected to be completed in February 2022. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $9,100,000 will be obligated at time of award, all of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, Lakehurst, New Jersey, is the contracting activity. Vigor Marine LLC, Portland, Oregon, is awarded a $9,329,088 firm-fixed-price contract for the maintenance, repair and preservation of Caisson Six. Work will be performed in Seattle, Washington, and is expected to be completed by December 2020. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $9,329,088 will be obligated at time of award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. 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