REDSTONE ARSENAL, AL – The Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments reports that Future Vertical Lift initiatives will modernize the Army’s fleet of rotorcraft and weapons systems while remaining conscious of budget challenges in today’s cost-conscious culture.

The CSBA report: Defense Acquisition and Affordability in the Digital Era; A Case Study with the Army’s Future Vertical Lift Program put FVL efforts into context with historical budgets from previous decades and emphasized that a Modular Open Systems Approach will drive down costs over the life cycle of the assets.

“What I see in this report is that FVL gives the Army the ability to live within its means while keeping pace with the evolution of technology,” said Maj. Gen. Walter Rugen, FVL CFT director.

Rugen noted three points he gleaned from the study: FVL efforts are a digital versus analog approach that will be a baseline for all programs for design and procurement initiatives; that MOSA is a key initiative to lower operating and support costs across all platforms; and the Army needs to continue an innovative acquisition strategy to continue driving down risks and costs.

“MOSA will be a game changer on many levels,” Rugen said. “MOSA is going to help the Army live within its budget by fostering a competitive environment with industry that will drive down costs while allowing the warfighter to rapidly upgrade mission systems creating real time dilemmas for our adversaries.”

To learn more, tune into the webinar Thursday, Oct. 7, 2021, 11 a.m. to 1230 p.m. Register for the webinar at https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_0MdFcwkAQ3aGpXsAPSR2GA. Gen. John “Mike” Murray, Army Futures commanding general; Maj. Gen. Rugen; and report author, Dr. Chris Bassler, will host a discussion and question and answer period about the report. To read the entire report, visit https://csbaonline.org/research/publications/living-within-ones-means-revisiting-defense-acquisition-and-affordability.

For more information, contact the FVL CFT Public Affairs Office at Lisa.M.Ferguson.civ@army.mil.