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Objective Analysis. Effective Solutions.

This report documents the history of the interactions between RAND Corporation logistics researchers and Air Force leaders over more than 40 years to inform decisions involving logistics planning, programming, and budgeting and to develop, maintain, and evolve an approach for improving the Air Force logistics system. The narrative covers a period in which the demands made on the Air Force logistics system became more dynamic, complex, and costly—an era in which increasingly sophisticated weapons were joined by a growing appreciation for the importance of readiness, sustainability, system reliability, and uncertainty in Air Force and RAND thinking about military logistics.

These reflections illustrate why the impact of expert research and analysis on entities as large and complex as the Air Force logistics system is sometimes not immediate. Although the path to impact is not always straightforward, a vision of clear principles can help guide logistics and other forms of research over time. By retaining deep knowledge and expertise in logistics and in the overarching themes that have guided RAND's logistics research for the Air Force over the past 40 years, RAND researchers can be ready to engage on these key themes and enduring questions over the long term.

• Chapter One

  Introduction

• Chapter Two

  Prologue: Some Ideas That Shaped My Early Thinking About Air Force Logistics and Prepared Me to Act Given the Opportunity

• Chapter Three

  1976 to 1979: Understanding How Logistics Policies, Processes, and Postures Impact Operationally Relevant Metrics, Costs, and Risks

• Chapter Four

  1979 to 1982: Integrating Logistics Capabilities and Constraints Within Wartime Planning and Readiness Assessments

• Chapter Five

  1982 to 1985: Developing Proactive Weapon System Readiness Assessments, LOG C2 Concepts, and Efforts to Address Uncertainty in Logistics System Designs

• Chapter Six

  1985 to 1987: Implementing RAND Contributions to Readiness Assessments and Increasing Emphasis on Incorporating Uncertainty in Logistics Systems

• Chapter Seven

  1987 to 1992: Building Responsiveness into Logistics System Designs to Cope with Uncertainty

• Chapter Eight

  1992 to 1996: A Period of Focusing on Logistics Efficiencies, with Less Attention on How Logistics Processes Impact Effectiveness

• Chapter Nine

  1996 to 2003: Relating Logistics Postures and Policies to Operational Effects and Costs Across Phases of Operations

• Chapter Ten

  2003 to 2011: Expanding Logistics Analyses to Focus on Enterprise-Wide Impacts

• Chapter Eleven

  2011 to 2014: Reorganization of AFMC and LOG C2 Stagnation

• Chapter Twelve

  2012 to the Present: Examining Logistics Under Attack

• Chapter Thirteen

  Moving Forward: Designing Logistics Systems to Be Responsive to Unanticipated Events