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	Director, Operational Test & Evaluation
FY97 Annual Report

E-6A AIRBORNE COMMAND, CONTROL AND COMMUNICATIONS PLATFORM

	Navy ACAT IC Program 16 systems Total program cost (TY$) $2008M Average unit cost (TY$) $168M Full-rate production 1QFY86 Prime Contractor Boeing Aircraft Company CTAS, Raytheon (Modifications)

SYSTEM DESCRIPTION & CONTRIBUTION TO JOINT VISION 2010

The E-6A Take Charge and Move Out (TACAMO) aircraft is a land-based, manned strategic communications relay platform. Its primary mission is to provide a survivable communications link from the National command Authority (NCA) to the fleet ballistic missile (FBM) submarine force.

The E-6A Avionics Baseline Upgrade (ABU) program replaces a significant portion of the mission communications equipment. Principal items are: High Power Transmit Set (HPTS) consisting of a 200 kilowatt solid state power amplifier (SSPA) for very low frequency (VLF) transmissions and a new dual trailing wire antenna system; MILSTAR satellite terminal; Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver; and Time/Frequency Standard Distribution System (T/FSDS). OT&E has been completed on the E-6A and ABU.

The E-6A has been designated to perform an Airborne Command Post (ABNCP) mission providing a survivable platform to execute the strategic forces. The ABNCP mission requires the transfer of systems from EC-135 aircraft, which currently perform this mission, the addition of a Mission Computer System (MCS) for the required communications capacity, and operating positions for the command post team. When the foregoing ABNCP modifications are completed, the aircraft will be redesignated to E-6B.

The E-6B TEMP was approved by OSD in January 1995. The Navy program office has completed a revised TEMP that was submitted for staffing in January 1998. An Early Operational Assessment (EOA) of the MCS was completed in March 1997. An Operational Assessment (OA) of MCS was conducted in September and October 1997. The OA evaluated the MCS installed in an E-6A that was transmitting and receiving live traffic parked on an airfield apron. OT-IIIA is scheduled to be conducted in third quarter FY98. This FOT&E will evaluate the ABNCP modification and verify correction of deficiencies found in all previous OT of the airplane and its modifications. The FOT&E is planned to be conducted with an aircraft conducting a normal deployment, manned by a fleet crew. In addition to their normal mission requirements, specific additional tests will be included to provide sufficient data for analysis. By combining OT with normal operations, there will be no additional O&M costs for flights, and, with exception of the Test Director and his assistant, the personnel will all be operational personnel executing their normal mission.

The EOA, conducted in a land-based systems integration facility, confirmed the potential for MCS to be operational effective. The EOA was limited to simulated messages because radio transmissions from the airplane on the ground was not possible because the very long antenna could not be extended. The subsequent OA was conducted on a not to interfer basis with the aircraft training being conducted for air crews. Radio transmissions in all frequency ranges, with the exception of VLF, were conducted. Based on preliminary data MCS demonstrated capability to properly handle all classes of messages and voice traffic. The OA enhanced the probability of achieving operational effectiveness in the FOT&E to be conducted March-June 1998.

MCS had been identified as a moderate risk because of previous deficiencies in a similar prototype system. Therefore, both an EOA and OA were scheduled as risk mitigation efforts. The EOA was conducted using simulation in a system integration facility. This demonstrated the advantages of using simulation early to test and evaluate software-intensive systems. The OA was conducted with the aircraft manned by a fleet crew using the MCS. Sufficient testing can be conducted with the airplane parked on the apron for the OA, thereby avoiding the O&M costs of flight tests.