Independent VV&A

I worked on a team that conducted a full-scale verification and validation of a new, online suite of programs designed to facilitate the management of entire fleets of aircraft through their various cycles of fielding, deployment, maintenance, and retirement. The software framework read in numerous standardized Navy information products and allowed managers to assign individual aircraft to units and units to higher-level units in an interactive, graphical way. This methodology supported a huge improvement of situational awareness of senior management as plans and deployments were updated and realigned over time.

The system under examination managed fleets of aircraft over their entire life cycle and incorporated rules about consumption of capability and end-of-life, production rates, depot maintenance rotations, and installed equipment, which determined what missions an individual aircraft was available to support.

The integrated contractor team had to learn the complex VV&A process specified by one of the Navy's chief analysts and then carry it out. The program ran over two years during which we analyzed every facet of the software framework's operations, transformations, and outputs, the ways in which users were supported in their actions and desires, the provenance and handling of the data, the management of the system and all its meta-processes including bug tracking and repair, configuration management, and access control. I was a senior analyst for much of the project but took over coordination of weekly meetings and status reports by the end of the project. I also wrote, edited, and formatted the 200-plus page report that constituted the team's final work product. The effort ultimately led to a successful deployment and accreditation.