We have all heard the saying the “Perception is Reality”. This statement is especially salient when discussing military operations in a post conflict environment. The implications of the perceptions of the local populace during the transition...
We, as Noncommissioned Officers, carry with us the experience of our numerous assignments throughout our careers. Those experiences, both good and bad, shape the way we view our Soldiers, peers, superiors, and execute our Military Occupational...
Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) pose a new and significant threat to American security. The nation does not presently possess the ability to adequately deal with this threat. Congress has tasked DoD to develop capabilities to deal with this...
What happens when a technologically advanced nation provides advanced technology to a much less advanced nation's military? Numerous political and diplomatic considerations go into the decision to provide the technology, but once the decision is...
What is success in war? Who defines success? A review of past theorists such as Sun Tzu, Thucydides, Jomini and Clausewitz along with modern scholars such as William Martel, Azar Gat, and J. Boone Bartholomees produces a model for understanding...
What role did the Army Air Forces have in the Battle of the Atlantic? Discussion subjects include the events causing participation, early organization for antisubmarine warfare, responsibility for antisubmarine operations from the air, the Army Air...
When 16 Air Assault Brigade (UK) was alerted for deployment to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, Major John Clark was serving as a squadron commander in 23 Engineer Regiment (UK), a subordinate unit that was also tapped to...
When American combat forces were first deployed to Korea in 1950 the battlefield results were generally tactical defeats. The troops that were initially deployed came from occupation duty in Japan and were not prepared for combat operations. In...
When Soldiers deploy to a combat zone the combatant commander must take additional steps to ensure that conduct does not become an issue with the “host” nation. General Order 1 is the means to that end. For the individual Soldier this means...
When the United States declared war on Kaiser Wilhelm's government on April 6, 1917, the U.S. Army underwent a profound growth and transformation to conduct combat operations against the German Imperial Army. Since the U.S. Army grew from 125,000...
When war erupted in the American colonies in 1775 at Lexington and Concord, the British Empire was logistically unprepared. Neither the army nor the supporting administration in Great Britain could comprehend the nature of their opponent or the...
When word came down in November 2004 that the 138th Signal Battalion's Alpha Company - part of the 38th Infantry Division, Indiana National Guard - was going to be sent to Iraq for a 2005-2006 deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom,...
While all warfare is an expression of politics, none is more pervasively so than irregular conflict. The irregular side, most probably employing a mixture of guerilla tactics and terrorism, will seek favorable political effect from several courses...