The Rapid Deployment Capability (RDC) expedited acquisition process can greatly reduce the cycle time required to deploy critical and emergent warfighting capabilities. This lessons-learned document is a synopsis of the chain of events that occurred in the Automated Information System (AIS) program office (PEO C4I and Space, PMW-180) which led to the rapid prototyping, production and deployment of a C4I systems on Navy ships within three months.
PEO C4I and Space, Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Information Operations (ISR/IO) Program Office, PMW-180, broke new acquisition ground by executing the Navy's first Rapid Deployment Capability (RDC) acquisition. This acquisition course provided for an expedited procurement and delivery of an essential C4I system, the Automated Identification System (AIS). In order to expedite these acquisition activities, PMW-180 requested, and gained approval from the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition (ASN(RDA)), to develop and implement these objectives under the Rapid Deployment Capability (RDC) policy outlined in SECNAVINST 5000.2C (Section 2.8).
