Will Commercial Specifications Meet Our Future Air Power Needs?

<p>To meet today's National security challenge the Air Force must maintain its technological superiority by using and maintaining a strong industrial base. The Air Force must do this in an environment of declining defense spending and rapidly paced development of key technologies in the electronics market. In order to meet this challenge the Air Force must reduce its acquisition costs and remove any barriers to ensure greater access to the latest commercial technologies. On 29 June 1994 Secretary of Defense William Perry issued a memorandum that gave preference to performance and commercial specifications over Military specifications (MILSPECs) and standards (MILSTDs). While the intent of the memorandum is good its implementation has been overzealous with the banning of MILSPECs with no regard for the phase of the acquisition performance information or whether a commercial specification or standard is available. The Air Force must carefully manage the use of specifications and standards be it military commercial or performance to ensure access to the latest available technologies while still obtaining a quality product at the lowest possible cost that will be supportable in the field.</p><p>This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore you will see the original copyright references library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world) and other notations in the work.</p><p>This work is in the public domain in the United States of America and possibly other nations. Within the United States you may freely copy and distribute this work as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.</p><p>As a reproduction of a historical artifact this work may contain missing or blurred pages poor pictures errant marks etc. Scholars believe and we concur that this work is important enough to be preserved reproduced and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.</p>