Department of Defense
DIRECTIVE
NUMBER 4120.15E
November 29, 2004
Certified current as of October 23, 2008
USD(AT&L)
SUBJECT: Designating and Naming Military Aerospace Vehicles
References: (a) DoD Directive 4120.15, “Designating and Naming Military Aerospace
Vehicles,” May 2, 1985 (hereby canceled)
(b) DoD 4120.15-L, “Model Designation of Military Aerospace Vehicles,”
May 12, 2004
(c) DoD Directive 5101.1, “DoD Executive Agent,” September 3, 2002
1. REISSUANCE AND PURPOSE
This Directive reissues reference (a), updates policies and responsibilities to promote clarity and
consistency throughout the Department of Defense in referencing military aerospace vehicles,
and continues to assign an Executive Agent to publish a joint regulation governing the
designation and naming of these vehicles and a single DoD-wide source document containing
approved designators and popular names.
2. APPLICABILITY
This Directive applies to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Military Departments
(including their National Guard and Reserve components), the Office of the Chairman of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Joint Staff, the Combatant Commands, the Office of the Inspector
General of the Department of Defense, the Defense Agencies, the DoD Field Activities, and all
other organizational entities in the Department of Defense (hereafter referred to collectively as
the “DoD Components”).
3. POLICY
It is DoD policy that:
3.1. Each military aerospace vehicle shall be assigned a unique mission-design series (MDS)
designator. Only approved MDS designators and popular names shall be used in referencing
these aerospace vehicles in official documents and public statements.
