An analysis of the impact of reliability and maintainability on the operating and support (OandS) costs and operational availability (Ao) of the RAH-66 Comanche Helicopter

Abstract

The RAH-66 Comanche helicopter program was initiated in 1983 to develop a reliable and maintainable attack/reconnaissance aircraft to replace the aging fleet of AH-1 Cobra and OH-58 A/C helicopters. After several funding reductions and restructurings, the program entered the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) stage of the acquisition process in 2000. With only four years remaining until initial fielding, the program office is still attempting to reach the ambitious reliability and maintainability goals needed to experience reduced operating and support (OandS) costs and high operational availability (Ao). This thesis analyzes the impact of reliability and maintainability on the OandS costs and Ao of the Comanche helicopter. The research focused on the question of where the Comanche program office should allocate resources to minimize OandS costs and maximize Ao. The research indicated that the best allocation of resources is to the improvement of system reliability. The negative impact to both OandS costs and Ao is significant if the predicted reliability goals are not met.