TRAVIS SHARP TYLER HACKER EVALUATE LIKE WE OPERATE WHY THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE SHOULD EVALUATE WEAPONS SYSTEMS AS NETWORKED FORCE PACKAGES, NOT INDIVIDUAL PLATFORMSEVALUATE LIKE WE OPERATE WHY DOD SHOULD EVALUATE WEAPONS SYSTEMS AS NETWORKED FORCE PACKAGES, NOT INDIVIDUAL PLATFORMS TRAVIS SHARP TYLER HACKER 2023The Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments is an independent, nonpartisan policy research institute established to promote innovative thinking and debate about national security strategy and investment options. CSBA’s analysis focuses on key questions related to existing and emerging threats to U.S. national security, and its goal is to enable policymakers to make informed decisions on matters of strategy, security policy, and resource allocation.ABOUT THE CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND BUDGETARY ASSESSMENTS (CSBA) ©2023 Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. All rights reserved.ABOUT THE AUTHORS Travis Sharp is a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. He directs the defense budget studies program and works to inform policymakers, senior leaders, and the public about issues related to resourcing national security. He also serves as an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve and is a lecturer at The John Hopkins University’s Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He has held positions with academic and policy organiza - tions, including George Washington University’s Institute for Security and Conflict Studies, West Point’s Modern War Institute, the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Center for a New American Security, and the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. His research has appeared in The Journal of Strategic Studies, Policy Sciences, Survival, and International Affairs, among other outlets. Tyler Hacker is a research fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. His work focuses on long-range strike, future operational concepts, and great power competition. Since joining CSBA, he has written on topics including ground-based fires, joint command and control, military innovation, and European security. Prior to joining CSBA, Tyler was an analyst at the Congressional Research Service, where he supported the members and staff of the U.S. Congress with analysis on subjects related to defense logistics. Tyler previously served as a field artillery officer in the United States Army in Germany, where he participated in NATO operations and exer - cises in Poland, Romania, and the Baltic states. He has also worked at the U.S. Army War College and the American Enterprise Institute. Tyler holds a B.A. in International Studies from Virginia Military Institute and an M.A. in Security Studies from Georgetown University. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors offer special thanks to Chris Bassler for contributing numerous insights included in the study. For feedback on earlier drafts, they thank Chris Bowie, Ivan Kanapathy, Evan Montgomery, and Thomas G. Mahnken. The authors also thank James Mersol for editing the final report and guiding it through production. The analysis and findings presented here are solely the responsibility of the authors. CSBA receives funding from a broad and diverse group of contributors, including private foundations, government agencies, and corporations. A complete list of these organizations can be found on our website at www.csbaonline.org/about/contributors.Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i The Promise of Collaborative Munitions ........................................ ii Fighter Aircraft and Mission-Level Cost Avoidance ................................ ii Advancing the NFP Approach .............................................. iii CHAPTER 1: THE NETWORKED FORCE PACKAGE APPROACH TO WEAPONS SYSTEMS EVALUATION . . .1 Critique of Platform-Centric Evalua