S.Amdt. 3551

This amendment, submitted by Mr. Kelly, aims to add a new section (SEC. 330) to bill S. 2296. Its purpose is to require the Secretary of the Air Force to include depot-level maintenance, repair, and sustainment coordination in at least one multinational exercise each year within the United States Indo-Pacific Command area of operations.

The amendment seeks to add the following requirements:

• Exercise Activities: The Secretary of the Air Force must incorporate planning sessions with covered nations to identify cooperation opportunities that reduce transportation needs, coordinate munitions stock and resupply routes, recognize airworthiness and maintenance certifications, and conduct emergency tabletop exercises for aircraft breakdowns in contested logistics environments.

• Coordination: The process must include coordination with the Air Force Sustainment Center and representatives from the United States Indo-Pacific Command, the United States Pacific Air Forces, and the United States Air Mobility Command.

• Reporting: The Secretary of the Air Force must submit a report to Congress within one year summarizing lessons learned from exercises involving the Commonwealth of Australia and the Republic of Korea. This report must cover topics such as:

  • Candidate systems for co-sustainment and workload opportunities.
  • Industry partner opportunities, including public-private partnerships.
  • Logistical challenges, intellectual property impediments, and International Traffic in Arms Regulations issues.
  • Recommendations for easing partnerships, including changes to status of forces agreements.
  • Analysis of maintenance capabilities, gaps, and how partnerships contribute to regional posture resilience and contingency operations.
  • Planning factors regarding force generation models, aircraft programs, and operational requirements.