U.S. Department of Defense Official Website

Feb. 10, 2010

U.S. Air Force Col. Richard M. Stuckey

DoD Tester of the Year Helps Lead Test,
Evaluation Effort

By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 10, 2007 — An awarding-winning member of the Defense Department’s Developmental Test and Evaluation office is helping to ensure the department’s acquisition machine stays well-oiled.

"(Field experience) helps, because when you put out a policy or guidance, you know how that’s going to affect the people out in the field, and I think that’s the key thing. It’s not just an arbitrary, knee-jerk reaction to something."

Col. Richard M. Stuckey

Air Force Col. Richard M. Stuckey earned the 2006 Office of the Secretary of Defense award for military tester of the year for his work at DT&E, the office that establishes department-wide policy on systems testing and sets standards for its 7,300 members’ education and training. Experts and engineers on DT&E’s staff also help shape guidelines the Defense Department submits to defense contractors along with proposal requests.

“At DT&E, we’re mainly looking at, ‘Do we have the policy and guidance, the framework setup for the program offices out there in the field and the folks working in the ranges?’” Stuckey said of his office’s overall function. “And, ‘Do they have the guidance they need to go forth and successfully execute a developmental testing evaluation program?’”

For a nearly nine-month period, Stuckey -- then a lieutenant colonel -- served as acting deputy director, a senior executive service-level position that’s usually reserved for a general officer or civilian equivalent. In this role, one of Stuckey’s prime objectives was to ensure that acquisition programs “started off on the right foot.”

“That’s obviously (Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England’s) big push,” the colonel said. “The right focus is to make sure that we start these programs right, and we do that by getting in early with all the specialties and one of those is Developmental Test and Evaluation.”

Stuckey said the DT&E office could play an increased role in leading the efforts of the testing community’s disparate parts. “This office wants to be the DT&E advocate for the community, for ranges, for the program offices. … I think it’s where we can provide some great benefit to the programs,” he said.

A more integrated approach to testing could make the acquisition process more efficient for government officials seeking new technologies and private-sector members who provide them, Stuckey said.

“It’s trying to get a continuum of testing from the very beginning through the very end, using the same data for the contractor and for developmental test and operational tests, and being able to interweave those so you get a more complete picture earlier in the testing without any lapse,” he said.

Stuckey’s experience as both an Air Force Weapon System Operator with more than 3,000 operational, test and combat flight hours and as a former test squadron commander gives him insight into the needs of developmental testers on the range.

After Operation Desert Storm, the need began to emerge for weapons technology that converted older-model weapons into accurate, or smart, munitions. At Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., Stuckey helped develop such systems as the Joint Direct Attack Munition.

“One of the big deals out there was that I was the first person to drop a JDAM in the Air Force,” Stuckey said. “So that was a very hectic time and a great time to be involved in bomber weapons tests.”

By increasing the number of personnel on its staff with similar field experience, DT&E could become more effective, Stuckey said.

“(Field experience) helps, because when you put out a policy or guidance, you know how that’s going to affect the people out in the field, and I think that’s the key thing. It’s not just an arbitrary, knee-jerk reaction to something,” he said. “(Instead), you can go through the thought process of how that’s going to affect program offices, their structure, cost schedule and performance, or how that’s going to impact how they test platforms out on the range.”

As Stuckey helps carry out DT&E’s mission, he also represents his office’s message on a committee dedicated to keeping an open dialogue between government officials and defense contractors. About a year ago, the National Defense Industrial Association established the Developmental Test and Evaluation Committee, which Stuckey now co-chairs with two private-sector members.

In the spring, the committee is slated to provide feedback on the rough draft of a document that will outline the department’s acquisition policies and procedures, Stuckey said. Meanwhile, he and his private-sector counterparts on the committee hold bi-weekly teleconferences and bimonthly face-to-face meetings.

“I think it’s a great forum for the government and for industry and for academia to come together,” he said. “If we can take their input and make a better product, we certainly are going to do that.”