AFCENT MICAP Velocity

TOPIC SPONSOR: 87 LRS

End-of-supply chain locations across AFCENT regularly experience velocity issues with Mission Capable Awaiting Parts (MICAPs) supply items. Non-AMC MICAPs (i.e. a MICAP for a F-15E) can take upwards of 2-3 weeks from the order being placed to the item being received by the requesting organization. Within the AMC system, non-AMC MICAPs are treated at 999 transportation priority and are still moved on a first-in, first-out (FIFO) basis from the AMC ports. As transportation priority and supply priority are not always the same, is there a possibility to connect the two into one overall priority?

• Bagnall, Capt. Justin et al, "Mobility Air Force and Agile Combat Employment: Recommendations on Unit Type Codes, Multi-Capable Airmen, Sustainment Challenges and Distribution Solutions," SOS AUAR 2021, 29 pgs.  
  • These authors directly connect the issue of MICAP delays to operational failure, finding that the supply chain's inability to keep up with MICAP demands directly degrades the overall readiness and effectiveness of units. Addressing the prioritization disconnect, the paper explains that deploying units are assigned Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) project codes to prioritize them over non-deploying units when sustainment conflicts arise. However, the authors emphasize that current supply models are reactive, and without a more integrated, proactive supply network, these competing priorities and logistical limitations will continue to cause delays and constrain operations.
• Begeman, Lt. Col. Jeremy, "Redefining Routes--An Inside Look at the Ari Mobility Command Channel Mission," AFGC thesis, 2024, 43 pgs.
  • Addresses AMC Channel Mission velocity delays by highlighting the inefficiencies of the current rigid, point-to-point scheduling structure and lack of payload-impact data. To overcome bottlenecks like the FIFO constraints at AMC ports, the paper recommends adopting commercial logistics strategies, specifically integrating a hybrid hub-and-spoke network with predictive analytics, real-time data management, and dynamic scheduling. By modernizing the scheduling architecture, AMC could pivot away from rigid processing structures and leverage dynamic routing to prioritize and expedite high-value cargo like non-AMC MICAPs based on real-time operational demand rather than the order of arrival.
• Black, Col. David J.,  "Memo on Fifth Generation Maintenance," AF Fellow (Lockheed-Martin), 2022, 3 pgs.
  • This paper addresses the supply priority system, noting that combat-coded or deploying units receive a higher supply priority for parts, but argues that relying on reactive MICAP requests is an inherently stressed approach. Rather than merely adjusting priority codes to fix velocity issues, the author recommends implementing Conditioned Based Maintenance Plus (CBM+) and predictive health algorithms to forecast failures before they occur. By transitioning to a predictive model, the Air Force could order parts before components break, creating a steady workflow that eases the sudden demand on supply and transportation systems and avoids the reactive MICAP trap altogether.
• Bonelli, Michael, "The Ugly Duckling: Why the Air Force Treats Simulations as a Second Class Weapons System," AFGC, 2022, 37 pgs.
  • ​​​​​​​This paper explains the current mechanics of supply priority, detailing how a System Reporting Designator (SRD) can prescribe a system as MICAP reportable. When a system receives this designation, the Maintenance Information System informs the supply chain that the part has a direct impact on mission execution, granting it a "priority supply status" with special procedures for expediting and tracking. The paper highlights how airframes leverage this MICAP designation to out-compete other systems for shared parts, explaining how supply priority is generated independently of AMC transportation priority in an effort to return aircraft to a Fully Mission Capable status. This paper explains the current mechanics of supply priority, detailing how a System Reporting Designator (SRD) can prescribe a system as MICAP reportable. When a system receives this designation, the Maintenance Information System informs the supply chain that the part has a direct impact on mission execution, granting it a "priority supply status" with special procedures for expediting and tracking. The paper highlights how airframes leverage this MICAP designation to out-compete other systems for shared parts, explaining how supply priority is generated independently of AMC transportation priority in an effort to return aircraft to a Fully Mission Capable status.
• Calderwood, Lt. Col. Lea, "Patient Movement Limitations In A Chemical, Biological, Radiological, And Nuclear Contested Environment," AWC SSP, 2018, 25 pgs. 
  • Provides historical context for AFCENT supply chain delays caused by mismatched supply and transportation priorities. The research highlights how critical medical supplies experienced significant velocity issues—averaging 4 days to process and an additional 10 days for shipment from the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Center-Southwest Asia (USAMMC-SWA) to the customer—because they were assigned a lower transportation priority (Class VIII) and had to compete for limited airlift with higher-priority items like ammunition and petroleum. The paper demonstrates that relying on "focused logistics"—which depends on rapid, time-definite transportation to reduce on-hand stock—fails when transportation capacity is constrained or when priorities clash. To mitigate these velocity issues, the authors recommend abandoning strict reliance on rapid airlift in favor of developing multi-modal transportation options and maintaining larger forward stockpiles, effectively decoupling critical supply availability from transportation priority bottlenecks.
• Carroll, Lt. Col. Benjamin,  "Redistributing Rapid Global Mobility Control: Air Mobility Command & Control for the Future," AWC SSP, 2022, 70 pgs. 
  • ​​​​​​​This paper explores the transportation priority side of the equation, explaining that Joint Deployment and Distribution Operations Centers (JDDOC) are responsible for prioritizing movements and assigning modes of transportation above the tactical level. The author notes that transportation prioritization frequently becomes problematic because multiple Combatant Commands submit competing requirements that cumulatively exceed the military's available airlift capacity. This systemic capacity shortfall and the constant tension between fulfilling local theater versus global requirements contextualize why even high-priority supply items might get bottlenecked in a first-in, first-out (FIFO) queue at Air Mobility Command ports.

• Earle, Dante K., "The Weakest Link: Blockchain and the Future of NATO," SAASS thesis, 2023, 146 pgs. 

  • Provides a historical analysis of why priority systems often degrade into a FIFO backlog, noting that during the initial buildup of Operation Desert Storm, "there was no priority among the cargo – except first in, first out". The paper explains that when airlift is treated as a common-pool resource, every service attempts to qualify their own requirements as the top priority, which overwhelms the capacity of the transportation network and forces logisticians to revert to FIFO processing. This suggests that simply connecting supply and transportation priorities into one overall code will not solve the issue unless the overarching system can equitably and sustainably validate and allocate these competing demands.​​​​​​​

• Herrill GCPME 2025 Tyrrany of Distance and Capacity in Air Mobility Operations in IndoPacom
  • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Explores the governance of transportation priorities, noting that the Department of Defense Transportation Movement Priority System (CJCSI 4120.02F) already dictates how airlift and tanker requirements are validated. However, the paper highlights that AMC planners constantly battle competing requirements, raising the question of how to allocate assets when multiple missions carry the exact same priority. This demonstrates that establishing a unified priority code for MICAPs would still require creative logistical planning, senior leadership intervention, or the use of staging operations to actually increase the velocity of parts through contested or congested theaters.
• Kehoe, Ashley, "Preparing the DoD Workforce for Supply Chain Operations," AFGC thesis, 2023, 41 pgs.
  • ​​​​​​​Examines the supply-side initiation of MICAP orders and how workforce actions impact the broader supply chain. The paper argues that localized decisions—such as technicians automatically replacing entire components rather than repairing them—create inconsistent demand signals and mass purchases that strain the entire logistics network. To improve the overall velocity and effectiveness of the supply chain, the paper concludes that the civilian and military workforce must be educated on how their individual repair and ordering decisions impact larger supply chain bottlenecks, which would help ensure that high-priority transportation codes are only utilized when absolutely necessary for mission readiness.
• Shriver, Christopher L., "Enhancing Military Lethality: Adopting Commercial Cargo Practices to Boost Air Force Strategic Airlift Efficiency," AFGC thesis, 2025, 46 pgs. 
  • ​​​​​​​Tackles the logistics backlog at strategic ports by advocating for individual shipment-level monitoring and advanced cargo tracking technologies (such as RFID and AI integration) to replace the current aggregated manifesting systems. By pairing this enhanced visibility with dynamic commercial routing practices, port operators would gain the real-time, end-to-end data necessary to locate and extract 999 transportation priority MICAPs from a FIFO backlog. Furthermore, consolidating Channel, contingency, and SAAM cargo at centralized hubs would maximize aircraft load factors and reduce transit times, directly increasing the velocity of critical supply deliveries to end-of-supply-chain locations.
• Strabley, Maj. Joseph M., "A Contested Horizon: Conducting Logistics Against A Near Peer Adversary," AFGC thesis, 2023, 37 pgs. 
  • Addresses the root problem of supply chain velocity by proposing the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for predictive and autonomous resupply. Rather than relying on a reactive priority system that waits for a critical demand signal and subjects it to standard transportation queues, the author suggests using AI algorithms to monitor "Days of Supply" and automatically trigger the ordering and shipment of critical assets before a shortage occurs. By shifting to an autonomous resupply model with minimal human intervention, the Air Force could circumvent the delays inherent in the current priority and transportation assignment systems, thereby significantly reducing the time required to resupply critical assets.
• Tromble, Jennifer, "Mission Capable: Means to Increase Readiness through Supply Chain Management of Repairable Items," AFGC thesis, 2022, 43 pgs. 
  • ​​​​​​​This paper analyzes the operational supply chain processes that result in long wait times and high Non-Mission Capable due to Supply (NMCS) and MICAP rates. To resolve these delays and better align supply chain efforts with warfighter needs, the author argues that the metrics used to evaluate supply and depot processes must be changed. Instead of measuring success based on the dollar value of inducted items, the paper recommends evaluating these processes based on their ability to directly minimize specific MICAP rates and maintain required inventory levels. By focusing enterprise metrics entirely on MICAP reduction, the Air Force could better synchronize its supply and transportation planning to meet actual fleet demand.
• Winfield, Maj. Rick et al, "Air Force Tankers – Managing the Tanker Supply Chain," AF Fellows, 2020, 41 pgs. 
  • Explores the inefficiencies caused by conflicting and disconnected priority systems within Air Mobility Command (AMC) and U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM). Although focused on the tanker supply chain rather than cargo MICAPs, the paper highlights that current military priority systems often lack enterprise-wide visibility and fail to seamlessly align with overarching strategic needs. To resolve disconnected priority and allocation systems, the authors recommend adopting commercial Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) processes to integrate operational planning with supply capabilities, which creates a consensus plan that aligns priorities across multiple units and geographies. Applying these commercial supply chain management concepts could conceptually be used to connect disparate supply and transportation priorities into a single, unified priority framework.​​​​​​​