THE ENDURING NEED FOR C5ISR SUSTAINMENT


assumptions and dependencies that under- gird this philosophy should be reviewed, if for no other reason than affordabil- ity. We must also consider our industry partners and the importance of provid- ing them with predictability. Terefore the Army has a critical need for a stable supply chain from which to draw repair parts, that we can maintain only through robust maintenance and sustainment of our C5ISR inventory.


SUSTAINMENT IS THE KEY TO READINESS Some of the United States’ greatest victo- ries can be attributed to supply chain issues that affected our enemies. Despite many significant advantages the British had over the North American colonies in 1775, one of its biggest failures was an inability to develop and protect an effec- tive supply chain. Because of this, British troops found themselves unready due to a lack of proper supplies, much to the bene- fit of the future United States. During the Civil War, American troops weaponized the supply chain in the Siege of Vicks- burg when the Union army cut off the Confederate army’s access to supplies and communications outside the city while simultaneously pushing their way inside.


In recent history, we have seen many examples of nations negatively impacted by poor logistics planning resulting in the inability to resupply forces. Images of broken-down trucks and fuel-exhausted tanks featured in global news outlets served as a reminder to us all. Tese supply chain issues affected entire military port- folios—weapon systems, air defense, aircraft, ships—because of destruction, damage or seizure during conflict and the inability to repair or replace those systems.


As we see from these examples, it is crucial our Army maintains its robust sustain- ment capabilities and a responsive and


90 Army AL&T Magazine Fall 2023


PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE


A Soldier conducts preventative maintenance and services on his satellite transportable terminal prior to installation in November 2022. Maintaining C5ISR systems is crucial for force readiness.


agile supply chain. Resources are finite, and the Army is now competing for parts not only against our adversaries, but our allies and our industry partners as well. Even newly fielded equipment is having to compete for the same parts and resources used by militaries and industries across the globe. Accordingly, it is also essential to have working, sustained legacy equipment as a contingency for times when the supply chain for newer systems cannot keep pace. An environment where we are competing for both in-demand parts and technol- ogy is not one to invest in state-of-the-art C5ISR technology and then not sustain it.


PAVING THE WAY AHEAD To ensure the future of C5ISR sustain- ment, we must continue to look long term, past the Army of 2030 and toward the Army of 2040. We need to embrace


public-private partnerships (government agency and private-sector collabora- tions) while leveraging Tobyhanna Army Depot, the Army’s organic C5ISR sustain- ment facility in northeast Pennsylvania. For enduring programs, this could mean obtaining technical data packages, intel- lectual property and government purpose rights, potentially held in escrow accounts to ensure we have access to the data neces- sary to make spare parts at Tobyhanna. It is also pertinent we continue to keep our organic industrial base (govern- ment-owned equipment and ammunition facilities) warm, knowing DOD has the capability to sustain systems in case of industry partner failures, shuttered production lines or the need to surge production to support large-scale combat operations.


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