LCID 2026 Panel: Airworthiness Reforms Push Speed in Order to Field Platforms Faster

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Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC) Deputy Commander Col. Chadwick M. Steipp moderated a panel event discussion at Life Cycle Industry Days (LCID) 2026 called “ATS and the Refinement of the Airworthiness Process.” Panel speakers included Lily S. Arcusa, SES, Director of AFLCMC’s Engineering Directorate and Technical Airworthiness Authority for Air Force weapon systems; Col. Paul W. Tinker, Deputy Director, AFLCMC’s Mobility Directorate; Col. Timothy J. Spaulding, Portfolio Acquisition Executive, AFLCMC’s Bombers Directorate; Jorge Gonzalez, Senior Associate, *Dayton Aerospace. An overarching theme of the hour-long discussion was shifting from compliance checklists to a tailored, risk-based approach to unlock speed to match the service's new Acquisition Transformation Strategy (ATS). Co-hosted by Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC) and Dayton Defense Life LCID and Air Force Research Lab’s (AFRL) Wright Dialogue with Industry (WDI) took place July 27 – 31, 2026, at the Dayton Convention Center in Dayton, Ohio. Though standalone events, LCID and WDI are aligned to gain efficiencies in sharing information, collaboration, and discussion. LCID focuses on the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center's future requirements, collaboration opportunities, and topics covering the entire acquisition life cycle and management across AFLCMC portfolios. Historically, LCID hosts more than 1,000 Government, Industry, and academic attendees and every AFLCMC program office. (U.S. Air Force video by Jim Varhegyi)