The FFM is air-transportable, can be moved easily by vehicles, can be positioned at greater distances from airfield pavement surfaces, and can be stored indoors out of the elements.

A standard FFM weighs about 1360 kilograms (3,000 pounds) and consists of nine fiberglass panels, each 1.83 meters wide by 9.14 meters long by 12.7 millimeters thick (6 feet wide by 30 feet long by 0.5 inch thick). Elastomer hinges 76.2 millimeters (3 inches) wide connect the panels. When folded, these mats are 1.83 meters wide by 9.14 meters long and 203 to 254 millimeters thick (6 feet wide by 30 feet long and 8 to 10 inches thick).

This repair system also includes joining panels and two support mat kits. The joining panels come in 7.32-meter and 9.14-meter (24-foot and 30-foot) lengths. One of each size is needed to connect two 9.14-meter by 16.46-meter (30-foot by 54-foot) mats. The resulting 16.46-meter by 18.29-meter (54-foot by 60-foot) mat is the normal size suitable for most crater repairs. If larger FOD covers are required, additional mats may be spliced together.

There are two types of support mat kits for the FFM. 

Mat Kit A contains all the necessary tools and hardware required to assemble, install, and maintain the system. 

Mat Kit B contains the anchor bolts required to attach the mat to the pavement surface.

Techniques for anchoring the FFM will depend on the type of pavement surface. The FFMs are predrilled for anchoring bolts. All three anchoring techniques use a 101.6- millimeter (4-inch) bushing through which the bolt passes to hold down the mat.

Folded fiberglass mat (FFM) foreign object damage (FOD) covers are suitable only for fighter aircraft and C-130 operations. These FOD covers are not approved for C-17, C-5 Galaxy, C-141 Star-lifter, KC-10 Extender, and KC-135 Stratotanker operations.