Military Readiness

Nearly 2 decades of conflict has degraded U.S. military readiness. To adapt to growing threats posed by major powers (such as China and Russia) and other adversaries, the Department of Defense (DOD) and the individual military services must make some urgent changes. 

• Attack submarines. The U.S. Navy's attack submarines gather intelligence undetected and attack enemy targets. But 10 years of maintenance delays for these submarines have resulted in over 15,000 lost operational days and an estimated $3.4 billion in costs. Additional delays are on the rise as submarines wait to be decommissioned—taken out of service—because shipyards don't have the capacity to start that process. With more submarines needing to be decommissioned in the next 5 years, decommissioning delays could cost the Navy more than $3.1 billion.
• F-35s. The F-35 is DOD's most costly weapon system, but it hasn't met performance goals and costs to sustain the aircraft continue to increase. In 2025, DOD launched a new $13.7 billion strategy to improve F-35 readiness by 2030. The strategy aims to address challenges, such as a lack of spare parts. However, multiple issues could threaten the strategy’s success—such as constrained industry capacity to meet increasing demand for parts. DOD also paid its contractor hundreds of millions in incentives since 2020 to improve F-35 readiness, but these incentives haven't been effective.
• Mission-capable goals. A review of whether 15 U.S. fighter and ground attack airplanes met their annual mission-capable goals for FYs 2018–2023 found that none met their goals in 2023. And only two—the F-15C and the F-16C—met their annual goals in at least half of those years.  
• Ship maintenance. Navy sailors maintain the ships that are needed to keep the U.S. safe, and the seas open for world commerce. But the Navy faces a range of challenges that hinder sailors' ability to complete maintenance work. These include an insufficient number of sailors, a lack of hand-on training, and outdated software to manage maintenance logistics.
• B-52 bombers. The B-52 bomber was introduced in 1955, and the Air Force now expects the aircraft to be operational through 2050. To achieve this goal, the Air Force is projected to spend an estimated $21 billion on modernization—including new engines, radar, and communications. However, the Air Force is currently planning to begin production of the largest upgrade—the engine replacement—before critical flight testing. By building engines before doing this testing, the Air Force increases the risk that the system will not operate as intended.
• Ground vehicle sustainment.Mission-capable rates for most Army and Marine Corps ground vehicles have decreased since 2015. A review of 6 types of Army ground combat vehicles found that 5 of them—including the Abrams tank, Paladin self-propelled howitzer, and Stryker family of vehicles—did not meet mission-capable goals during any fiscal year during 2015 through 2024. The Marine Corps does not have a mission-capable goal but five of seven vehicles experienced declines in mission-capable rates. Factors affecting maintenance included shortages of spare parts, skilled maintenance personnel, and proprietary technical data.
• Service member fatigue. For over a decade, DOD surveys have found that the majority of service members report sleeping less than 6 hours a night—despite DOD recommending 7 or more. The Navy issued a policy in 2017 for managing sailor fatigue after finding that it was a contributing factor in fatal ship collisions. But the Navy has inconsistently implemented this policy. For example, many ships are understaffed—and heavy workloads are a contributing factor to fatigue. In addition, DOD needs to identify an office or individual to oversee fatigue-related guidance and oversee service-level efforts.
• Osprey aircraft accidents. The Osprey tiltrotor aircraft combines the capabilities of a helicopter with a turboprop airplane. The Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force use the Osprey for missions that can require both aircraft types. But the Osprey has had 4 fatal accidents since 2022, resulting in 20 service member deaths and raising concerns about its safety. 

Image

• Aerial refueling tankers. The Air Force's aerial refueling tanker fleet can refuel aircraft while in flight during military operations. The critical fleet has consistently fallen below availability and capability standards in recent years. But these standards don't tell the whole story. Tankers that can be used for aeromedical evacuations and cargo transport missions may be declared "mission capable" even if they can't do refueling. Also, Air Force officials found multiple risks to keeping the tankers in working order, such as frequent part failures and inadequate supply chains for timely replacements.
• Navy shipyards. The Navy is taking on its largest-ever construction and restoration effort to improve poor conditions and outdated infrastructure at its 4 shipyards. These shipyards are essential to ensuring the Navy’s aircraft carriers and submarines are fit to fight in operations. This effort could take over 50 years and ultimately cost more than $200 billion. But Navy and congressional oversight requirements don't include regular evaluation of costs, risks, and performance for this effort. Having such information for decision-making would ensure that current plans evolve with the Navy’s future needs.