"...[ALIS] will reach its full level of capability in 2017....
...The biggest difference between it and older versions of ALIS is new hardware, which breaks up the huge system into smaller, 200-pound modules that troops can more easily transport while deployed, Perreault said.
“They have wheels that come with them, and soldiers can then carry them from one location to the other without the use of mechanical devices,” he said. “Before they had to be … put onto a pallet or something like that.”
In the coming months, Lockheed will host a group of Marine Corps users and test whether two maintainers can break down the system, carry it to a different location and rebuild it within seven hours, he said. “We’ve proven already in our internal testing that can be done within that seven-hour timeframe.”
ALIS 2.0.1 also adds a software function called the “deployable spares pack,” which allows users to specify which parts will be taken on a deployment, he said. That will make it easier for the military to manage its inventory....
...Not all of ALIS’ capabilities were criticized in the DOT&E report. The system’s 2.0 release included a new piece of hardware called the portable maintenance device reader meant to cut down the time it takes to transfer data from an aircraft into ALIS. “The fielded PMD readers have functioned as intended,” the report stated. Download time decreased from about an hour to less than five minutes.
The Air Force plans to field ALIS 2.0.2 in time for its own initial operational capability in July 2016. The service will use the same “deployable” hardware as the Marine Corps. The software, however, will contain a new feature called sub-squadron reporting, which allows the service to operate jets separately from their squadron while still allowing status reports and other data to be sent to the mother squadron."