3rd Combat Aviation Brigade Soldiers use GCSS-Army's Enterprise Aviation software during an Initial Operational Test at Redstone, Alabama in July 2022. (Credit: GCSS-Army)
Mission Area
September 26, 2022
On Sept. 16, 2022, Honorable Douglas R. Bush, the Army acquisition executive, granted PEO EIS the authority to proceed with full system deployment of the Global Combat Support System – Army (GCSS-Army) Enterprise Aviation solution. This milestone decision allows the GCSS-Army team to implement its solution at all Army Aviation units, across all Army components, worldwide.
The AAE’s approval comes after years of intense software development, integration and testing activities conducted by GCSS-Army with numerous stakeholder organizations. The full deployment decision caps off a series of six successful limited deployments by the program dating back to December 2019. All GCSS-Army deployments were delivered on schedule and under budget.
“The AAE’s full deployment decision is a major milestone for the program and the Army,” said Kevin Curry, project manager for Defense Integrated Business Systems at PEO EIS. The GCSS-Army team’s ability to deliver this capability on schedule given tight budgetary constraints is nothing short of amazing.”
As part of the full deployment process, the GCSS-Army Aviation Logistics team will field the new Enterprise Aviation solution and provide product training to approximately 51,000 Army users from 395 Army Aviation units at 170 locations. Once this process is complete — system acquisition and fielding are expected to last through September 2023 — the aviation community will have the full benefits of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system to manage tactical logistics and finances in near real-time. Additionally, commanders will have access to timely combat readiness information to help them make critical battlefield decisions.
Prior to the GCSS-Army program, the Army Aviation community did not have the ability to incorporate data into the Army’s tactical logistics enterprise. This left senior leaders without accurate, organization-wide visibility into vital data needed to properly allocate resources for aviation units and operations. GCSS-Army’s Enterprise Aviation solution bridges that gap by integrating aviation maintenance and logistics data from each aircraft into the Army enterprise. This capability enables near real-time visibility into Army aviation assets, readiness and the supply chain, allowing commanders and senior leaders to make informed decisions regarding the assets.
The next key milestone for the GCSS-Army Aviation Logistics team is the authority to proceed with capability support for Enterprise Aviation, which is projected to take place in September 2023.
GCSS-Army is one of the five Army ERPs destined for convergence into one enterprise business system under the Army’s Enterprise Business Systems – Convergence initiative.