Defense Secretary James Mattis has issued a memo that calls for the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy to achieve a minimum mission capability rate of 80 percent for four types of fighter aircraft by the end of fiscal 2019, Defense News reported Tuesday.Mattis asked the service branches to reduce the operating and maintenance costs of F-35, F-22, F-16 and F-18 fighter jets starting in fiscal 2019, according to the memo obtained by the publication.
He wrote that military services should “also set and pursue aggressive targets for other enduring fixed- and rotary-wing aviation assets.â€
The defense undersecretary for personnel and readiness should come up with reporting procedures and definitions to evaluate mission capability and cost beginning this month.
Mattis asked the P&R undersecretary to work with service branches and the undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment to develop implementation frameworks for the four aircraft by Oct. 15.
Those frameworks should state how to incorporate best practices in supply chains, depots and units, according to the document.
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