An evaluation and comparison of the Army's acquisition plans for two tactical command control and communications systems: mobile subscriber equipment and single channel ground and airborne radio system

Abstract

This thesis evaluates the Acquisition Plans of two US Army Command, Control and Communications (C3) systems: Mobile Subscriber Equipment (MSE) and the Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System (SINCGARS), both of which are components of the Army Tactical Command and Control System (ATCCS). The study examines the defense acquisition process through the comparison of the Acquisition Plans and lessons learned for these two programs, and determines if there is an optimal strategy for the Army to use when acquiring tactical C3 systems. An analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the two Acquisition Plans, and an evaluation of the similarities and differences of two programs, concludes that the MSE Acquisition Plan proved more successful than its SINCGARS counterparts because of its Non-Developmental Item approach. This study recommends maximum use of the NDI strategy for acquiring C3 systems whenever possible.