Electronic Warfare (EW) threat simulators include equipment used to represent enemy air defense weapon systems. Advanced threats are highly capable systems of the Commonwealth of Independent States, such as the self-propelled 2S6 antiaircraft artillery gun and various surface-to-air missile systems. For training scenarios, EW threat simulators let aircrews face a variety of realistic EW threats and evaluate their countermeasures performances. The goal of the Military Departments is to train aircrews to reduce combat losses and enhance mission success. The Military Departments have budgeted $1.5 billion to develop EW threat simulators for training during FYs 1989 through 1997.

GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) simulator program, specifically the: (1) need for the armed services to avoid paying for the development of duplicate simulators; and (2) acquisition of simulators which misrepresent Soviet threat systems. GAO found that: (1) the armed services are paying for multiple development of simulators for emitter-receiver processors (ERP) and emitters; (2) total ERP development costs exceeded $560 million, while emitter program costs exceeded $600 million; (3) a perceived lack of authority within DOD for managing the services' simulator programs and the services' desire to control their separate programs contributed to multiple ERP development; and (4) the Joint Executive Committee on Air Defense Threat Simulators and its agent committee have attempted to develop cooperation among the services without much success. GAO also found that: (1) 35 of 46 simulators it examined deviated substantially from estimates of the threat characteristics and affected system range, accuracy, and resistance to countermeasures; and (2) the services were accepting deficient simulators without review by or approval from potential users.

The Threat Simulator Program (the Program) evolved from a single Service concept to a tri-Service and OSD effort with $1.5 billion programmed for threat simulator development, acquisition, and upgrade during FY 1990 through FY 1994. Threat simulator is a term for equipment having characteristics of actual threat weapon systems. Threat simulation is achieved by using mathematical computer models, combining hardware with computer models, and building hardware replicas of radars and missile seekers. Simulators are used in laboratories, indoor test facilities (chambers), and open-air test ranges to test the effectiveness and survivability of U.S. weapon systems and to train military personnel.

According to Department of Defense (DOD) officials, the Air Force Electronic Warfare Evaluation Simulator (the Simulator), located at Air Force Plant 4 in Fort Worth, Texas, is an important asset for helping to protect U.S. and allied pilots and aircraft against the missile threats posed by adversaries. The Simulator at Plant 4 is one of only two Air Force facilities of its kind that test countermeasures against heat-seeking missiles, and it is the only Air Force facility that currently houses the equipment necessary to test countermeasures against more sophisticated radio frequency surface-to-air missiles. Although the Simulator equipment and facility are government owned and managed, they have been operated by Lockheed Martin since 1958. However, as part of a larger Air Force initiative to consolidate and streamline test and evaluation activities, the Air Force is planning to terminate the Simulator contractor operations in Texas; relocate its six radio frequency threat simulators to Wright- Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio; and redirect infrared test work to Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. Both proposed receiving locations currently have other government-operated electronic warfare test facilities. The Air Force considers the infrared capabilities at Plant 4 in Texas and at the Eglin facility redundant, and Eglin's facility has been utilized at a higher rate than the Simulator at Plant 4 over the last several years. In light of this lower utilization at Plant 4, the Air Force has placed the Simulator's infrared test equipment in on-site storage. It does not consider moving the Simulator's infrared test configuration essential to current mission needs, but would prefer to do so to potentially reuse this test equipment at Eglin. According to Air Force officials, this relocation proposal would reduce costs; result in critical technical advantages, such as higher-fidelity testing; and provide them with more operational control over these testing and evaluation assets. Our objectives for this review were to determine (1) to what extent OSD's report on the proposed relocation of the Air Force Electronic Warfare Evaluation Simulator includes a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis and (2) to what extent OSD has addressed the technical issues involved in the proposed relocation.