A Case Study in NASA-DoD - The Black Vault

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turns out, NASA had agreed to the Air Force specifications for the L-AEM
design without apparently realizing that the resultant Boeing design
might resemble the STPSS design rather than reflecting the AEM heritage
as an upgraded AEM. Consequently, even the AIM Program Office was not
interested in pursuing the development of the L-AEI as specified by
Boeing.
As for the Air Force, the similarity of the L-AEM spacecraft to
the STPSS has reintroduced the possibility that the Space Test Program
Office should develop its own standard spacecraft, especially since NASA
was reluctant to pursue the development of the SMMS or L-AEM without
first justifying it for NASA missions. Following the conclusion of the
Rand study, the Air Force Space Test Program Office issued a request for
proposals for the spacecraft to support its first shuttle-launched
missions. Whether or not the spacecraft designs for these missions will
represent the beginning of an Air Force standard spacecraft design must
await the outcome of a number of future Air Force decisions. For example,
the Air Force has informed the contractors bidding on the spacecraft for
their next two Space Test Program missions that the criteria for evaluating
their proposals will include special credit for designs that reflect evidence
of standardization. While the value of this additional credit was not
available to Rand, it is not exactly clear how much of a spacecraft weight
and cost penalty the contractors are willing to risk to provide the excess
performance capability needed for a standard spacecraft design. Furthermore,
Boeing, the designer of both the AEM and L-AEM, is reexamining its corporate
position on continuing to design and develop unmanned spacecraft. In any
event, it appears that the possibility of procuring NASA spacecraft for
the Air Force Space Test Program will be determined on an individual basis
and will certainly depend on whether the Air Force follows a procurement
strategy that evolves into a standard spacecraft of its own design.
SPACE SHUTTLE-RELATED ORGANIZATIONAL PROBLEMDS
Aside from the spacecraft procurement issue, the Rand case study
touched on a couple of space shuttle-related issues. Beginning in 1980,
the Air Force is committed to the use of the space shuttle as its primary
launch vehicle.
While the Air Force has considered the procurement