The launch of the long-awaited Defense Travel System is scheduled for December, soon after actual travelers perform the final tests of the one-stop travel administration system, officials announced Thursday.
The Defense Travel System (DTS) will allow DoD travelers to make all travel arrangements from their desktop computers. DTS' contract, valued at $263.7 million over five years, was awarded in May 1998 to information technology firm BDM International, which shortly after was acquired by TRW.
DoD's current travel system, which uses paper vouchers, invoices and other supporting documents will seem like the Model T of travel once the new system is in place, said Air Force Col. Pamela Arias, DTS program director.
Monday marks the first testing of the new system by actual travelers at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri. This final testing phase will last several weeks and sets the stage for the initial deployment of the new system, scheduled for Dec. 18.
Initial testing in a laboratory environment was completed in late September and was successful, according to both DTS and TRW.
Processes involved from start to finish in the DoD travel cycle were tested at a lab in Fort Huachuca, Ariz. Travel authorizations were created, reservation data were selected through the travel reservation system interface, and the reservation request was routed to the travel agent for ticketing. Documents were then sent to the Defense Finance and Accounting Service and archived so they could later be audited and stored in a digitally-signed, sealed file. The test also ensured that travel costs were accurately calculated and vouchers were paid in full, TRW officials said.
"The lab test at Fort Huachucha was extremely successful and we're excited to move forward to the final test phase. It has been a real team effort between the Department of Defense and TRW," Arias said.
DTS has experienced significant delays since its inception. One serious setback involved trying to make the system's security compatible with security firewalls at thousands of military installations.
The contract initially covers DoD Travel Region 6, which includes 11 states (Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin).
"This is a major milestone and we're excited to move ahead to the test phase. The bottom line is that we have put a lot of work into it," said Major. Brent Calderwood, director of public affairs for DTS.
The new Defense Travel System will:
- Allow travelers to request authorization, make arrangements and submit claims from a desktop computer.
- Reduce the time it takes to make travel arrangements and process vouchers.
- Require only one approval signature.
- Signal authorizing officials if a traveler requests something that deviates from established per diems, travel regulations, distance tables or other standards.
- Provide rapid reimbursement.
- Trigger random, rather than routine, audits.
- Yield a database that can facilitate reporting for better planning and budgeting.
- Use public/private-key infrastructure to allow digital signatures and provide security for sensitive but unclassified information.
- Cut direct costs by 30 percent and voucher processing costs by 76 percent.