Pentagon urged to define affordable mass as loss replacement rate (warontherocks.com)

• Pentagon lacks a standard for 'affordable mass' despite $54 billion request for drones.
• Affordable mass should be defined as loss replacement rate, not just low unit cost.
• Attrition dynamics: expendability, replenishment, reconstitution.
• Peacetime consumption via training depletion, planned obsolescence, and dual-use is critical.

"The article argues that the Pentagon lacks a standard definition for 'affordable mass', currently a popular but vague term. The author, a defense executive, proposes defining it as the ability to replace combat losses as fast as they are likely to occur. This requires managing three attrition dynamics—expendability, replenishment, and reconstitution—and a production-consumption model that includes continuous depletion, planned obsolescence, and dual-use demand to sustain industrial capacity. The analysis critiques the focus on unit cost without considering replacement rates."