Photo By Clayton Cummins | U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Brian Moore, Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex commander...... read more read more
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At the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex, we are at the forefront of a critical digital transformation that will define the future of aircraft sustainment and ensure our Air Force remains dominant in organic sustainment.
As the largest aerospace maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility in the Department of Defense, OC-ALC sustains some of the Air Force’s most vital assets, from the venerable B-52 Stratofortress to the future sustainment mission of the B-21 Raider. Digital integration is key to maintaining the balance between sustaining the “oldest old” and innovating the “newest new.”
For decades, sustainment has been an analog—aircraft are maintained on fixed schedules or repaired only after failures occur. This approach is no longer viable. The future of warfare demands speed with discipline, agility, and predictive capability. To meet this challenge, the OC-ALC is embracing digital tools that will allow us to anticipate issues before they arise, increase efficiency, and ensure aircraft are ready to fight when and where they are needed. Digital transformation is not just an upgrade to our processes but a strategic imperative for sustaining air superiority.
Revolutionizing Sustainment with Digital Tools
One of the most significant advancements in our digital transformation is integrating predictive maintenance through data analytics and real-time monitoring. By developing innovative techniques, we can detect failures before they occur, reducing costly downtime and ensuring mission readiness. Instead of waiting for an issue to ground an aircraft, we proactively address problems, minimizing disruptions and extending the lifespan of capital equipment assets.
We also have various data collection tools to revolutionize aircraft inspections. These vehicles can map aircraft surfaces, identify corrosion, and track structural changes over time—tasks that once required time-consuming manual inspections. This technology enhances safety, speeds up maintenance, and allows our artisans to focus on the complex repairs that keep our fleet in the air, all while collecting data for future artificial intelligence use.
Beyond aircraft maintenance, digital integration is reshaping how we sustain the force globally. Under the Global Enterprise Network for Universal Sustainment referred to as GENUS, we are deploying forward repair nodes that bring depot-level repair capabilities closer to the point of need. This shift is essential in an era of distributed sustainment, where logistics must be agile and resilient.
A key pilot program within GENUS, FALCON (Forward Air Logistics Complex Operational Node), is embedding depot artisans within operational units to reduce turnaround times for critical repairs. This program, being tested with plans for expansion to other strategic locations globally, will be a game-changer. It will allow us to embed depot-level expertise and authority directly with the warfighter, increasing aircraft availability.
Advanced Manufacturing: The Future of Aerospace Sustainment
Another pillar of our digital transformation is advanced manufacturing, mainly 3D printing. The OC-ALC has been investing in additive manufacturing for over a decade, making us a leader among military depots and the broader aerospace industry.
Currently, we produce both polymer with plastic components and metal parts through 3D printing, but the true breakthrough for metal additive manufacturing resides with airworthiness certification. The ability to print certified metal aircraft components and get them certified, will revolutionize sustainment by eliminating supply chain bottlenecks, reducing lead times, and ensuring parts are available when and where they are needed. We must accelerate airworthiness certification by flying “low risk” parts to gain risk data.
To accelerate this capability, we are partnering with the major universities and educational institutions to advance research in metal 3D printing. The challenge is certifying these components for flight use—a process requiring rigorous engineering assessments and risk evaluations. By refining these processes, and gaining data from low-risk parts, we aim to dramatically expand the range of flight-critical parts that our mechanics and engineers can produce digitally.
The goal is to be postured to allow forward maintainers to fabricate parts on site instead of waiting for shipments from centralized repair facilities. This advantage will decrease supply chain disruption times.
Sustaining the Force Through Digital Innovation
At its core, sustainment ensures our aircraft remain available and ready. GENUS and digital integration will bridge the gap between repair and mission generation, transforming sustainment from a logistical challenge into a strategic advantage.
But this transformation is not just about technology—it is about people. The true national treasure at the OC-ALC is our workforce. Our engineers, maintainers and artisans bring unmatched expertise and adaptability to the mission through a sustainment enterprise network. As we integrate new digital tools, we must invest in workforce training and STEM education to ensure our people have the skills to operate and optimize these advanced digital technologies.
The future of sustainment is being written today at the OC-ALC. By embracing digital integration, predictive analytics, advanced manufacturing, and forward repair concepts, we are modernizing sustainment for the 21st century. In an era of contested logistics and rapid technological advancements, our ability to regenerate and sustain combat power will be decisive in future competition and conflict.
The OC-ALC is leading the organic sustainment charge, ensuring our Air Force remains globally capable, ready and lethal.
| Date Taken: | 04.03.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 04.07.2025 11:38 |
| Story ID: | 494725 |
| Location: | TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, OKLAHOMA, US |
| Web Views: | 77 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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