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F-35 maintenance diagnostic system needs software fix
Key Points
The F-35's Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS) is a computer diagnostic system that mechanics plug into the aircraft to simplify maintenance checks.
"The programme is improving, but it is not where it needs to be," said Sean Stackley, the assistant secretary of the US Navy (USN) for acquisition. "The issue of false positives is very real," Stackley added. "The concerns with regards to the reliability, responsiveness, the timeliness of ALIS informing the war fighter is at the top of our priority list." He said the programme office is testing software upgrades that will have to be inserted over time.
In addition to its high false positive rate, officials raised concerns that the system functions sluggishly. Lieutenant General Christopher Bogdan, the F-35 programme executive officer, said ALIS has been treated as a separate effort rather than as part of the F-35 programme, but he has now "changed fundamentally how we develop ALIS" in hopes of developing solutions sooner. "It's a problem," Gen Bogdan said. "We know it is a problem, and we have to address it."
Physically, the system is a roomful of servers and is too large to deploy aboard ships. Its software includes some 5 million lines of code. The system is used to diagnose all three variants of the aircraft, including the US Marine Corps' (USMC's) short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) variant, which is set to become operationally deployable within months.
Source: IHS Jane (unable to post the link)
Key Points
- ALIS is experiencing high "false positive" rates
- Software upgrades will have to be introduced to fix the problems over time
The F-35's Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS) is a computer diagnostic system that mechanics plug into the aircraft to simplify maintenance checks.
"The programme is improving, but it is not where it needs to be," said Sean Stackley, the assistant secretary of the US Navy (USN) for acquisition. "The issue of false positives is very real," Stackley added. "The concerns with regards to the reliability, responsiveness, the timeliness of ALIS informing the war fighter is at the top of our priority list." He said the programme office is testing software upgrades that will have to be inserted over time.
In addition to its high false positive rate, officials raised concerns that the system functions sluggishly. Lieutenant General Christopher Bogdan, the F-35 programme executive officer, said ALIS has been treated as a separate effort rather than as part of the F-35 programme, but he has now "changed fundamentally how we develop ALIS" in hopes of developing solutions sooner. "It's a problem," Gen Bogdan said. "We know it is a problem, and we have to address it."
Physically, the system is a roomful of servers and is too large to deploy aboard ships. Its software includes some 5 million lines of code. The system is used to diagnose all three variants of the aircraft, including the US Marine Corps' (USMC's) short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) variant, which is set to become operationally deployable within months.
Source: IHS Jane (unable to post the link)