A Case Study in NASA-DoD - The Black Vault

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Force interface was retained, there was a subtle shift in sponsorship
from the Air Force Space Test Program Office/HMS Program Office to
the AEM Program Office during the two months between the first and
second phases of the study. This seemed to negatively affect the
participation of the Air Force Space Test Program Office. In addition,
a NASA GSFC reorganization during this period affected the
leadership of the AEM Program Office and resulted in a reassignment
to NASA headquarters of the project monitor in the AEM Program Office.
As mentioned earlier, the MMS Program Office interest in the study
also decreased after the completion of the first phase of the study
* because the results had been favorable to the MMS, i.e., tended to
validate the S cost estimates and included the MHS in the preferred
procurement option, and because there were no inputs required from
the MMS Program Office for the second phase. As a consequence, the
Rand-client interaction was substantially different for the two
phases of the study. Clearly, it would have been more desirable for
the study to have collapsed the two phases into one continuous study.
To do this would have meant delaying the Air Force inputs to the FY 77
budget process; the penalty for doing this was uncertain at the time.
In retrospect, it appears that such a delay could proably have been
accepted with a minimum penalty.