Non-Medical Testing and Evaluation

Non-Medical S T Finding Lack of Realistic Testing and Evaluation for Accepting Chemical and Biological Defense Equipment 

The committee believes that deploying to the fleet or fleet Marine force (FMF) equipment that is either operationally ineffective or unsuitable for the operational purpose for which it is intended can have a detrimental effect on unit readiness. 

The preceding, of course, merely restates long-standing DOD policy on the testing and evaluation (T E) of new acquisitions. The problem in this case is twofold (1) the T E policy is not consistently applied, and (2) operational testing of potential fleet systems in environments contaminated by chemical or biological agents is very difficult to achieve. 

Replicating realistic, representative operational scenarios for T E in contaminated environments presents a different, but no less important, challenge. 

Difficult or not, operational testing should be considered a headquarters responsibility to its warfighting customers before new systems are introduced to the fleet. Such testing may employ compromises necessitated by the potential hazards involved, but it should use every information source available to answer the same set of questions that would be asked about any other new operational system being introduced to the fleet. 

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