Decision intelligence for defense sustainment fuses inspection, sensor, maintenance and supply data onto a digital twin of each asset, recommends whether to fly, restrict, inspect or ground it with the cost of waiting made explicit, and keeps the decision with accountable maintainers and engineers.
Readiness decisions
| Decision | Signal | Context it needs | Authority | Outcome measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fly, restrict, inspect or ground | Finding or trend on a component | Inspection history, limits, mission schedule, spares | Human / augmented — engineering | |
| Pull maintenance forward | Remaining useful life below plan | Phase schedule, hangar capacity, parts | Augmented — maintenance control | |
| Cannibalize or wait for parts | Part shortage | Depot stock, lead times, fleet readiness | Augmented — sustainment | |
| Fleet allocation | Mission demand | Asset condition, crew, location | Human |
Scope
How the twin supports the decision
Data that feeds readiness decisions
Condition
NDI results (eddy current, UT, borescope), health and usage monitoring, oil analysis.
Usage
Flight hours, g-exceedances, cycles, sortie profiles.
Maintenance
Work orders, deferred defects, time-change items, configuration.
Supply
Depot and base stock, lead times, cannibalization history.
Authority in sustainment
Airworthiness decisions stay with qualified people. Decision intelligence works at the augmented level: it assembles evidence, forecasts growth, prices the options and drafts the work order; a maintenance officer or engineer decides. Lower-consequence scheduling — which inspection slot, which hangar bay — can move on-the-loop once recommendations prove reliable. See decision autonomy.
What to measure
| KPI | Why |
|---|---|
| Mission-capable rate | Readiness |
| Unscheduled maintenance | Surprises avoided |
| Cannibalization rate | Supply health |
| Time to decision | Signal to approved action |
- Readiness is a stream of per-asset decisions.
- A twin makes condition and the cost of waiting visible.
- Engineers and maintainers keep authority.