This monograph discusses the current need for platoon forward observers in M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicle equipped mechanized infantry battalions. Changes in maneuver and artillery doctrine, emerging. technology, and a shrinking force structure have...
Multinational operations have been the norm in warfare and information management between multinational forces has long been an issue within alliances and in coalition warfare. The ongoing Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA) in information...
This study examines how the American army trained and developed its company-level leaders during the First World War. It highlights the prewar army’s concepts of leadership and explains the limitations of the army’s system for selecting and...
Threats to peace, violations of security and challenges to world order, which led to the creation of the United Nations (UN) in 1945 will continue. States and state-like entities will continue to approach the UN with their grievances. The...
Colombia remains one of the most troubled countries in South America. The continued export of drugs coupled with a significant insurgent threat and increased violence against civilians, signals a crisis capable of disrupting the entire region....
On 28 March 2001, the United States Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory's embedded "think tank," the Center for Emerging Threats and Opportunities, announced its intentions for developing a follow-on volume of the Small Wars Manual. This Small...
Mission, threat and capabilities adaptations in the twenty-first century continue to change the tasks assigned to U.S. Army Infantry units. Traditional infantry tactical training does not prepare U.S. infantry forces for many of the tasks required...
This monograph shows how understanding three conceptual tradeoffs of complex versus complicated, complexity at large-scale versus fine-scale, and exploration of potential problems versus exploitation of known solutions can help the military...
Nearly twenty years ago, as a new student in the Army's Command and General Staff Officer's College, Infantry Branch officers introduced to me the relatively newly codified doctrinal term "center of gravity." Throughout the "best year of our lives"...
From December 1, 2008 to January 9, 2009, thirty-two students from Staff Groups 16A and 16B at the Command and General Staff College (CGSC) conducted an operational level study in order to recommend a course of action for the Afghanistan Campaign...
In recent years, global players such as the United States, the European Union (EU) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) have noted Africa's growing strategic importance to their respective interests. Among those interests is the increasing...
The United States Air Force believes that the current fitness test has placed a demand on airman to stay fit year round. The semi-annual test results are showing there is a positive trend in fitness scores among all ranks and ages, and Air Force...
This monograph investigates how the Air Force concept of air occupation applies to operational campaign planning. The post Cold War era and a New World Order poses new challenges for operational planners. They must meet the changing geopolitical...
With the development of the "long war," the U.S. military's focus has shifted dramatically from its traditional emphasis on conventional operations to irregular and indirect approaches to safeguard America's vital interests. One of the least...
This study examines a fundamental misalignment in the efficiency and effectiveness of current processes employed to select and place candidates for service in tomorrow's United States Army. This misalignment concerns the Knowledge, Skills,...
An American military presence has been prevalent on the Korean Peninsula since the end of World War II. As Korea attempted to recover from decades of bitter Japanese rule, internal struggles and politics led to the division of Korea into North and...
This study strives to determine the most effective way to organize and train a military force at the brigade level and below to build peace during contested peace operations. The thesis investigates three organizational models for military forces....
Although the government’s reliance on contractors to support military forces is not a new phenomenon, the degree to which contractors are involved in Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom (OIF) has increased substantially. In OIF in...
This study examines the Army's need for a middleweight force. Such a force must be rapidly deployable, opposed entry capable, lethal, tactically mobile and survivable against well armed 21st Century threats. Versatility is essential for the...