Defense Primer: Department of Defense Maintenance Depots

Defense Primer: Department of Defense Maintenance Depots

November 7, 2017
Defense Primer: Department of Defense Maintenance Depots
Section 2464 of Title 10, United States Code states that it is
operating locations to perform on-site technical assistance
“essential for the national defense that the Department of
or in-depth repairs. DOD’s OIB also serves as a repository
Defense maintain a core logistics capability that is
for technical data, unique tooling, test equipment, and
government-owned and government-operated...to ensure a
design capability required to repair individual components
ready and controlled source of technical competence and
and weapon systems.
resources necessary to ensure effective and timely response
Organization of the DOD Industrial Base
to a mobilization, national defense contingency situations,
Each military service includes command structures with
and other emergency requirements.” Accordingly, all
responsibility for providing logistics and maintenance
military departments own and operate organic industrial
support to the majority of the military equipment within the
facilities to maintain, repair and overhaul equipment. These
service’s control. There are currently 17 DOD facilities
facilities are collectively referred to as the organic industrial
whose primary responsibility is to conduct depot-level
base (OIB).
maintenance (see Figure 1).
The OIB consists of depots and shipyards that perform
Figure 1. DOD Depot Maintenance Facilities
depot-level maintenance and repair. Outside of the depot
system, the Army operates 17 arsenals and ammunition
plants whose primary role is to manufacture and store
ammunition while the Air Force and Navy utilize 16
Centers for weapon system support. These Centers (6 Air
Force and 10 Navy) are responsible for related research,
development, test and evaluation (RDT&E), acquisitions
and sustainment activities.
What is Depot Maintenance?
Section 2460 of Title 10, United States Code, defines
depot-level maintenance and repair as “material
maintenance or repair requiring the overhaul, upgrading, or
rebuilding of parts, assemblies, or subassemblies, and the

testing and reclamation of equipment as necessary,
Source: GAO-17-82R
regardless of the source of funds for the maintenance or
repair or the location at which the maintenance or
Army
repair is performed [emphasis added by CRS].”
Army Materiel Command (AMC), headquartered at
The definition includes “(1) all aspects of software
Redstone Arsenal, AL, develops and delivers materiel
maintenance classified by the Department of Defense as of
support to maintain combat equipment. AMC operates five
July 1, 1995, as depot-level maintenance and repair, and (2)
depots, each of which is generally responsible for specific
interim contractor support or contractor logistics support (or
systems:
any similar contractor support), to the extent that such
 Anniston Army Depot, AL: Combat vehicles, small
support is for the performance of services described in the
caliber weapons, artil ery, and rail operations.
preceding sentence.”
 Corpus Christi Army Depot, TX: Rotary wing
aircraft.
Section 2460 specifically excludes certain activities such as
 Letterkenny Army Depot, PA: Air defense and
“the procurement of major modifications or upgrades of
tactical missile systems.
weapon systems that are designed to improve program
 Red River Army Depot, TX: Combat and tactical
performance” and nuclear refueling of aircraft carriers.
wheeled vehicles.
Additionally, the procurement of parts for safety
 Tobyhanna Army Depot, PA: Electronic systems.
modifications is not considered a depot-level task, but the
installation of those parts is.
Air Force
How does the Organic Industrial Base
support readiness?
Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC), headquartered at
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH, conducts research,
DOD depots and shipyards perform complete overhauls on
development, test and evaluation while also providing
weapon systems and repair many individual components
acquisition management and logistics support. Under
within each weapon system. Many of the depots and
AFMC’s leadership, the Air Force Sustainment Center
shipyards also have the ability to send repair teams to
(AFSC), located at Tinker Air Force Base, OK, directs the
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Defense Primer: Department of Defense Maintenance Depots
sustainment of air and space weapon system readiness
necessary to maintain and repair the weapons systems and
through depot maintenance, supply chain management and
other military equipment “as necessary to enable the armed
installation support. AFSC directs the operations of the
forces to fulfill the strategic and contingency plans prepared
three Air Logistics Complexes (ALCs), each of which
by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under [10
generally performs work on specific weapon systems:
U.S.C. §153(a)].” Section 2464 requires the Secretary to

assign the organic depots and shipyards sufficient workload
Ogden ALC, UT: Aircraft such as the F-35, F-22, and C-
130 as well as Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic
to ensure cost efficiency and technical competence in
Missiles.
peacetime while preserving the surge capacity and

reconstitution capabilities needed to support contingencies.
Oklahoma City ALC, OK: Aircraft such as the B-1B
and B-52 as well as military aircraft engines.
The 50/50 Statute
 Warner Robins ALC, GA: Aircraft such as the F-15, C-
Section 2466 requires a minimum level of depot
5 and Special Operations Forces aircraft.
maintenance be performed at organic depot facilities and is
often referred to as the 50/50 statute or just 50/50. The
Navy
statute states that not more than 50 percent of the funds
made available in a fiscal year to a military department or
Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), headquartered
defense agency for depot-level maintenance and repair
at the Washington Navy Yard, District of Columbia
workload may be used to contract nonfederal government
operates the shipyards and has technical authority for ship
personnel for the given workload. This prevents DOD from
maintenance operations. The four shipyards within
outsourcing a majority of its maintenance workload to
NAVSEA perform depot-level repairs on ships and
ensure organic facilities, equipment and personnel receive a
submarines as assigned:
sufficient peacetime workload to remain qualified and
 Norfolk Naval Shipyard, VA.
available in times of emergency.
 Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, HI.

The statutory ratio of public to private depot-level funds
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, ME.

expenditures has changed over time from a 70/30
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, WA.
requirement when it was first enacted in 1982, to a 60/40
From a naval aviation perspective, Commander, Naval Air
mix in the early nineties. The current 50/50 ratio was
Systems Command (NAVAIR) provides full life-cycle
enacted in 1997.
support of naval aviation aircraft, weapons and systems. It
Centers of Industrial and Technical Excellence
is responsible for the operation of three aviation Fleet
(CITE)
Readiness Centers (FRCs) providing support to both Navy
Section 2474 authorizes service secretaries and, in the case
and Marine assets:
of a Defense Agency, the Secretary of Defense to

“designate each depot-level activity or military arsenal
FRC East, NC: Fixed and rotary wing aircraft such as
the V-22, F/A-18, F-35, UH-1N and H-53 variants.
facility of the military departments and the Defense

Agencies...a Center of Industrial and Technical Excellence
FRC Southeast, FL: Aircraft such as the P-3 and EA-6B,
in the recognized core competencies of the designee.”
as well as multiple aircraft engines.

 FRC Southwest, CA: Fixed and rotary wing aircraft
A facility designated as a CITE may enter into a partnership
such as the AV-8B, E-2, H-60, AH-1 and UH-1 variants.
with private industry. These partnerships offer flexibility to
the depots to perform subcontract work for private industry
Marine Corps
and for private companies to use facilities or equipment
“not fully utilized for a military department’s own
Logistics Command, headquartered in Albany, GA, directs
production or maintenance requirements” for either military
the Marine Depot Maintenance Command (MDMC) in
or commercial purposes. One model is partnering with
repairing, rebuilding, and modifying all ground combat
Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) on equipment
equipment and combat support and combat service support
overhaul. The OEM provides the parts/kits and the depot
equipment. MDMC operates one depot comprised of two
provides facilities, tools, and labor.
production plants:

Minimum Capital Investment
Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany, GA: Ground-
combat and combat-support equipment (East Coast).
Section 2476 stipulates investment in the “capital budgets

of the covered depots of that military department a total
Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow, CA: Ground-
combat and combat-support equipment (West Coast).
amount equal to not less than six percent of the

average...workload at all the depots of that military
Statutory Framework for the Depots
department for the preceding three fiscal years.” This
Chapter 146 of Title 10 U.S.C. contains several provisions
directive ensures the departments reinvest in facilities and
governing the performance and resourcing of depot-level
equipment.
maintenance. In addition to statutorily defining depot
Note: former CRS Intern Kylie Weaver assisted in the
maintenance and repair (10 U.S.C. 2460) related provisions
preparation of this Defense Primer report.
include: §2464, §2466, §2474 and §2476.
Core Logistics Capabilities
Lynn M. Williams, lmwilliams@crs.loc.gov, 7-0569
Jason A. Purdy, jpurdy@crs.loc.gov, 7-5050
Section 2464, first enacted in 1984, requires the Secretary
of Defense, in consultation with the Chairman of the Joint
IF10768
Chiefs of Staff, to identify the core logistics capabilities
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