UCLASS is not in session

UCLASS stands for Unmanned Carrier-Launched Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) capability.  This is a Navy plan to develop, build, and field from 6 to 24 aircraft starting in 2014.  The estimated cost is $3.7 billion over the years 2014 to 2020.  However, the Navy does not intend to conduct what in government jargon is called a Milestone B review--a key decision that formally initiates a system development program and triggers key oversight mechanisms--until after the initial UCLASS capability has been developed and fielded in fiscal year 2020.  Thus, the system will be developed without such basic mechanisms as a formal cost and schedule baseline, statutory unit cost tracking, and regular reports to Congress on cost, schedule, and performance progress.

The GAO spells out the risks involved by not having this review:

First, the UCLASS cost estimate of $3.7 billion exceeds the level of funding that the Navy expects to budget for the system through fiscal year 2020. Second, the Navy has scheduled 8 months between the time it issues its request for air vehicle design proposals and the time it awards the air vehicle contract, a process that DOD officials note typically takes 12 months to complete. Third, the UCLASS system is heavily reliant on the successful development and delivery of other systems and software, which creates additional schedule risk. Fourth, the Navy will be challenged to effectively manage and act as the lead integrator for three separate but interrelated segments--air vehicle, carrier, and control system--and 22 other government systems, such as the aircraft landing system, the timing and alignment of which are crucial to achieving the desired UCLASS capability.