CHAPTER 7 AIRCRAFT  INVENTORY  REPORTING  SYSTEM (AIRS) The  Navy  Aircraft  Inventory  Reporting  System (AIRS) provides the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), the  Naval  Air  Systems  Command  (NAVAIR- SYSCOM), and type commands with the information needed to manage naval aviation. All information collected by the inventory system is used for specific purposes. No information is collected out of curiosity or out of incidental interest. The capability to fight, or the actual use of armed aircraft on a combat mission, is the prime reason for naval aviation; aircraft are the prime element of naval aviation.  Management  of  this  element  involves  the following: Deciding what is to be accomplished Acquiring and distributing the resources to do what is to be accomplished Regulating the use of these resources Reviewing the overall program for possible improvement; to see why things failed to go as planned, what was overlooked, and what was unnecessary; to  learn  and  benefit  from experience These   management   functions   depend   upon accurate feedback of service experience information of the use and current status of aircraft. INTRODUCTION TO THE AIRCRAFT INVENTORY REPORTING SYSTEM (AIRS) LEARNING  OBJECTIVE:  Identify  the instruction that describes reporting procedures used  in  the  Aircraft  Inventory  Reporting System (AIRS). Current AIRS procedures are established by the latest edition of Aircraft Inventory Reporting System, OPNAVINST   5442.2.   This   document   provides instructions  for  recording  and  reporting  information about  the  inventory,  logistics,  readiness,  and  use  of Navy aircraft. OPNAVINST 5442.2 also specifies. policies and procedures that concern the custody and the accountability of Navy aircraft. Every aircraft, at any given instant from acceptance by the Navy until final disposition, is in the custody of one (and only one) reporting custodian and one (and only  one)  controlling  custodian.  Controlling  custodians are commonly referred to as “operating commands,” and reporting custodians are commonly referred to as “operating  units.”  Whenever  an  aircraft  changes custody, the aircraft is transferred by one activity and received by another. In these cases, receipt and transfer are  considered  to  be  simultaneous  transactions.  An aircraft  remains  in  the  reporting  custody  of  the transferring unit until accepted by the receiving unit. Reporting  custodians  are  the  lower  echelon (squadrons  and  units  assigned)  and  usually  have physical custody of the aircraft. Reporting custodians are the initial source of all data used in the system. Controlling  custodians  are  the  higher  echelon—the commands that exercise administrative control of assignment, use, and logistic support of certain aircraft as specified by the CNO. Examples of controlling custodians are the Commander, Naval Air Force, Atlantic Fleet (COMNAVAIRLANT); Commander, Naval  Air  Force,  Pacific  Fleet  (COMNAVAIRPAC); and the Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA). In most cases, an activity reports on a onetime basis each incident of aircraft custody. change, status change, flight  operation,  reduced  material  condition,  or  changes in material condition reporting status (MCRS). Some of this information is processed at the local level by the data services facility (DSF) and forwarded to the appropriate  controlling  custodian.  Other  information  is sent  directly  to  the  controlling  custodian  by  the reporting custodian via OPNAV XRAY reports. Reporting  documents  used  in  AIRS  include  the OPNAV XRAY message (used to report custody and status change), the Maintenance Action Form (MAF) (reports aircraft with reduced mission capability and 7-1