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Sustaining the Drone Enterprise: How Manpower Analysis Engendered Policy Reform in the United States Air Force

Author

Listed:
  • Kiel M. Martin

    (United States Air Force Academy, USAF Academy, Colorado 80840)

  • Daniel J. Richmond

    (Headquarters United States Air Force Studies, Analyses and Assessments (HAF/A9), Washington, DC 20330)

  • John G. Swisher

    (Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06510)

Abstract

The remotely piloted aircraft (RPA), colloquially labeled the “drone,” has become iconic of American military campaigns during this century. However, with surging demand for RPA combat operations, the United States Air Force (USAF) has struggled to train and retain sufficient manpower to operate these aircraft. As part of a recent effort by the Secretary of Defense to stabilize manpower trends in the USAF RPA enterprise, we developed a dynamic manpower projection model to quantify the potential impact of more than 50 policy initiatives. Ultimately, the model showed that a combination of five major policy initiatives would most efficiently and expeditiously improve manpower trends. The Air Force has already begun to implement these initiatives as part of a plan that will affect over 1,100 active-duty airmen operating a multibillion-dollar enterprise. In this paper, we discuss the background and complexity of the RPA manpower problem, the metrics that we used to evaluate the manpower system, and the modeling techniques we employed to inform a comprehensive solution to mitigate this manpower shortfall.

Suggested Citation

  • Kiel M. Martin & Daniel J. Richmond & John G. Swisher, 2017. "Sustaining the Drone Enterprise: How Manpower Analysis Engendered Policy Reform in the United States Air Force," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 47(2), pages 137-149, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:orinte:v:47:y:2017:i:2:p:137-149
    DOI: 10.1287/inte.2016.0882
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    Cited by:

    1. Andrew Armacost & James Lowe & Jesse Pietz & Kiel Martin & Joseph Wilck & Drew Ives, 2018. "Developing Operations Research Practitioners: United States Air Force Academy Operations Research Program," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 48(6), pages 500-509, November.
    2. Kunovjanek, Maximilian & Wankmüller, Christian, 2021. "Containing the COVID-19 pandemic with drones - Feasibility of a drone enabled back-up transport system," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 141-152.

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