With a team of five, the AMCOM Aviation/Missile Resource Assessment & Analysis Directorate's reach spans four continents. The mission: provide assessments of all sustainment support activities and serve as the command's eyes and ears to validate requirements, processes, and make risk-mitigation recommendations designed to improve AMCOM's products and services.
The Directorate's capabilities are exemplified by more than 150 years of collective experience.
"We are the checkers, who check the checkers," Mark Smith, AMRAA Director said.
Currently the team is working toward adding missile experts for full aviation and missile assessment capabilities. Once completed, the Directorate will assess all AMCOM provided sustainment support services on an 18-24 month cycle.
AMRAA traces its legacy to 2008, when Maj. Gen. Jim Myles was the commander. Originally, the team focused on assessing aviation sustainment contract oversight, but since then has included assistance visits for Active, Reserve, and National Guard aviation units. Most recently, the team's efforts have expanded to Foreign Military Sales, non-standard rotary wing aircraft operations, and assisting the Forces Command Aviation Resource Management teams.
AMRAA assessments are tied to readiness and instilling cultures of efficiency. For instance, the team assessed the Taiwan AH-64E Apache maintenance program last year to determine issues impacting readiness. The results were briefed to Taiwanese senior leaders who implemented many of the recommendations resulting in operational readiness rates improving to meet readiness goals.
As the Commanding General's verification team, each effort requires the formulation of organizational appropriate corrective action plans based upon issues and observations from the assessments. Last year, the team assessed the Crash and Battle Damage program at Corpus Christi Army Depot as directed by the AMCOM Commander. The goal was to find areas for improvement that would reduce the current repair cycle time. The team, was also directed to assess AH-64 readiness issues impacting flight training at Fort Rucker, Ala.; these efforts continue today.
Annually in October, the team updates checklists to reflect regulatory changes as well as contract modifications to ensure consistent risk-mitigation solutions are provided to improve the safety, quality, standardization, effectiveness and efficiency of operations. The results of these assessments are designed to foster data-driven results that reduce costs, improve schedules, safety, quality, standardization, effectiveness, and efficiency of AMCOM's products and services.
"It is all about helping an organization improve," Smith said.
Organizations wishing assistance should contact Smith at 256-955-6775 or mark.d.smith.civ@mail.mil.
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