CAN UNCLASSIFIED Strategic and operational airlift data Data collection for decision support to Canadian Joint Operations Command (CJOC) Movements Jim Chan DRDC – Centre for Operational Research and Analysis The body of this CAN UNCLASSIFIED document does not contain the required security banners according to DND security standards. However, it must be treated as CAN UNCLASSIFIED and protected appropriately based on the terms and conditions specified on the covering page. Defence Research and Development Canada Reference Document DRDC-RDDC-2020-D119 November 2020 CAN UNCLASSIFIED CAN UNCLASSIFIED IMPORTANT INFORMATIVE STATEMENTS This document was reviewed for Controlled Goods by Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) using the Schedule to the Defence Production Act. Disclaimer: This publication was prepared by Defence Research and Development Canada an agency of the Department of National Defence. 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Template in use: EO Publishing App for SR-RD-EC Eng 2018-12-19_v1 (new disclaimer).dotm © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada (Department of National Defence), 2020 © Sa Majesté la Reine en droit du Canada (Ministère de la Défense nationale), 2020 CAN UNCLASSIFIED Abstract In the fall 2019, a question on how many charter flights should Canadian Joint Operations Command (CJOC) use was raised by the Command. The CJOC Operational Research and Analysis (OR&A) team was tasked to address the question. During the first phase of the study, from February 1st until March 13th, 2020, the author was temporarily embedded in CJOC Movements (J4 Mov) to observe and understand the flight selection process. Meanwhile, an external data source was identified to collect data on CJOC’s airlift demand. This document describes the flight selection process, explains the data collection methodology, and summarizes the collected data. Significance to defence and security A roundoff error is found in the YFR Tracker workbooks. As many Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) fleets use the workbooks to collect the yearly flying rate (YFR), the error has a widespread effect on the accuracy of the measure. The service-exchange program Air Transport, Air-to-air Refueling, and other Exchange of Services (ATARES) did not see much utility but it has potential of easing the stress on the CC-177 fleet. DRDC-RDDC-2020-D119 i Résumé À l’automne 2019, le commandement a soulevé une question concernant le nombre de vols nolisés que devrait utiliser le Commandement des opérations interarmées du Canada (COIC). L’équipe d’analyse et de recherche opérationnelle (EARO) du COIC a été chargée de répondre à cette question. Au cours de la première phase de l’étude, menée du 1er février au 13 mars 2020, l’auteur a été affecté temporairement aux mouvements du COIC (J4 Mouv) afin d’observer et de comprendre le processus de sélection des vols. Pendant ce temps, une source de données externe a été choisie pour recueillir des données sur les demandes de transport aérien du COIC. Le présent document décrit le processus de sélection des vols, explique la méthode de collecte des données et résume les données recueillies. Importance pour la défense et la sécurité Une erreur d’arrondi se trouve dans les classeurs de suivi du contingent annuel d’heures de vol (CAHV). Puisque toutes les flottes de l’Aviation royale canadienne (ARC) utilisent les classeurs pour déterminer le CAHV, cette erreur a une incidence importante sur l’exactitude de la mesure. Le programme d’échange de services, l’Accord relatif au transport aérien, au ravitaillement en vol et à d’autres échanges de services (ATARES), n’a pas été très utile, mais il pourrait atténuer les contraintes qui pèsent sur la flotte de CC 177. ii DRDC-RDDC-2020-D119 Table of contents Abstract ................................. i Significance to defence and security ....................... i Résumé ................................. ii Importance pour la défense et la sécurité ..................... ii Table of contents .............................. iii List of figures ............................... iv List of tables ................................ v Acknowledgements ............................. vi 1 Introduction .............................. 1 1.1 Sharing the strategic/operational airlift capability .............. 1 1.2 Airlift planning ........................... 2 1.3 Other flight options ......................... 3 1.4 Aim ............................... 4 1.5 Scope .............................. 5 1.6 Outline .............................. 5 2 Aerospace Planning Tool (APT) ....................... 6 2.1 Background ............................ 6 2.2 Collected data ........................... 8 2.3 Summary of data .......................... 11 3 YFR Tracker .............................. 19 3.1 Background ............................ 19 3.2 Collected data ........................... 21 3.3 Summary of data .......................... 24 4 ATARES ............................... 29 4.1 Background ............................ 29 4.2 Collected Data ........................... 29 4.3 Summary of data .......................... 31 5 Discussion and conclusion ......................... 33 References ................................ 35 List of symbols/abbreviations/acronyms/initialisms ................. 36 DRDC-RDDC-2020-D119 iii List of figures Figure 1: A screenshot of the remote desktop portal for accessing APT. ......... 6 Figure 2: A screenshot of “Plan Board” in APT. .................. 7 Figure 3: A screenshot of a sample of “Serial Details.” ................ 8 Figure 4: A sample “Serial Details” of inconsistent columns of “Flying Time” and “Assigned YFR,” in addition to missing distance between CFS Alert and CFB Trenton. ... 10 Figure 5: A map of flight stops listed in Figure 4. .................. 10 Figure 6: Flight stop distribution for airlift tasks that support CJOC missions. ...... 16 Figure 7: Flight stop distribution by different fleet for airlift tasks that support CJOC missions. .............................. 17 Figure 8: A screenshot of the “Front Cover” worksheet in a typical YFR Tracker workbook. 19 Figure 9: A screenshot of the “K1017 Tracking” worksheet in a typical YFR Tracker workbook. .............................. 20 Figure 10: An example of interchanged squadron number and aircraft tail number. ..... 21 Figure 11: Two screenshots of some rearranged YFR Tracker data. ........... 23 Figure 12: A screenshot of the worksheet “ATARES CONSUMED.” .......... 30 Figure 13: A screenshot of the worksheet “ATARES Summary.” ............ 30 Figure 14: Airlift arrangement process at CJOC J4 Mov. ............... 33 iv DRDC-RDDC-2020-D119 List of tables Table 1: CDS’s Strategic Priority List FY19/20. .................. 1 Table 2: CJOC J4 Mov airlift expenditure in FY18/19, and forecasted expenditure in FY19/20. 3 Table 3: CJOC charter flights in the first 11 months of FY19/20. ........... 4 Table 4: Number of requested airlift tasks in FY18/19 and FY19/20. .......... 11 Table 5: Number of employed aircraft type in FY18/19 and FY19/20. ......... 12 Table 6: Number of tasks that fulfilled at least one RFE or none at all in FY18/19 and FY19/20. .............................. 13 Table 7: Distance flew for the supported organizations in FY18/19 and FY19/20. ..... 14 Table 8: Most frequently stopped airports by the CJOC’s airlift tasks in FY18/19 and FY19/20. .............................. 14 Table 9: Number of airlift tasks supporting CJOC’s sub-organizations in FY18/19 and FY19/20. .............................. 18 Table 10: YFR of the three transport fleets in FY17/18, FY18/19 and FY19/20. ...... 25 Table 11: YFR for flights from or to CFB Trenton. ................. 26 Table 12: YFR for flights from or to Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait. .......... 27 Table 13: YFR for flights from or to Souda Air Base, Greece. ............. 27 Table 14: YFR for flights from or to Glasgow Prestwick International Airport, United Kingdom. .............................. 28 Table 15: YFR for flights from or to Cologne Bonn Airport, Germany. ......... 28 Table 16: Airlift by the ATARES program before April, 2020. ............. 31 Table 17: Sample YFR data for estimating the YFR in the ATARES missions. ...... 32 DRDC-RDDC-2020-D119 v Acknowledgements The author would like to thank everyone in CJOC J4 Mov for their hospitality during the time when he was collecting the airlift data. The advices, patience, music, and snacks are greatly appreciated. vi DRDC-RDDC-2020-D119 1 Introduction Airlift plays an important role in military logistics because it is the fastest way to project and sustain a force. Unfortunately, its largest