• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

RDL Homepage

Table of Contents

Document Information

Download Instructions

---

LESSON 2

FUNDAMENTALS OF ARMY OPERATIONS

OVERVIEW

LESSON DESCRIPTION:

In this lesson you will learn the fundamentals of Army operations and the four key forms of IEW support to Army Operations.

TERMINAL LEARNING OBJECTIVE:

INTRODUCTION

The US Army's warfighting doctrine reflects the nature of modern warfare. It applies the principles of war and combat power dynamics to contemporary and anticipated future battlefields within the strategic policy direction of our government. It is inherently a joint doctrine that recognizes the teamwork required of all the services and the extension of the battlefield in time, space, and purpose through all available resources and campaign design. The qualities of skill, tenacity, boldness and courage have always marked successful armies and commanders and will continue to do so. Army doctrine exploits those qualities, together with technology self-reliance, and the spirit of the offense that characterizes the American soldier. Army doctrine recognizes that advanced weapons and technologies are no better than the skills which leaders and solders employ them against the enemy.

PART A--THE RANGE OF MILITARY OPERATIONS

The Army identifies two types of military operations-War and Operations Other Than War.

• Operations Other Than War. Operations Other Than War can be conducted during peacetime and during conflict. During peacetime, the US attempts to influence world events through those actions that routinely occur between nations. Conflict is characterized by hostilities to secure strategic objectives. The prime focus of the Army is warfighting, yet the Army's frequent role in operations other than war is critical. Use of Army forces in peacetime helps keep the day-to-day tension between nations below the threshold of conflict. Typical peacetime operations include disaster relief, control, treaty verification, support to domestic civil authorities, and peacekeeping. US can use force to compel compliance. Regardless of the specific type of operation, a return to the environment of peacetime is part of the desired strategic endstate.
• War. War may be of a limited or general nature. In either instance, the army as part of a joint team, applies decisive force to fight and win with minimum casualties. The desired strategic goal remains directed at conducting hostilities on terms favorable to the US and its allies and retiring to peacetime as quickly as possible.

PART B--JOINT, COMBINED, AND INTERAGENCY OPERATIONS

The Army will not operate alone. The Army contributes a full range of unique capabilities for combat, combat support (CS), and combat service support (CSS), functions for sustained land combat operations as part of a joint, combined or interagency team. In this environment, the Army will also operate with other agencies of the US Government. Army forces must be prepared to conduct a number of operations other than war with a variety of government and non government agencies, other services, forces from other nations, and international agencies. Robust liaison will facilitate understanding, coordination, and mission accomplishment.

PART C --INTEGRATION OF ARMY CAPABILITIES

The capabilities of the US Army are best realized through the integration of its many components working in concert with joint and combined forces.

• The Total Force. The US Army, with the realities of a smaller force, conducts operations as a total force of the active component, reserve components, and civilians acting in concert with other services and allies.
• Types of Force. The Army recognizes three general types of combat forces-armored forces, light forces, and special operations forces which provide a balanced and versatile force mix, increasing the options available to the field commander to the joint force.
• Balance. Balance and a rich choice of options are key to success. Successful commanders do not run out of options, they limit the enemy's options instead. Only with the capability to parry and strike in any direction with sudden and overwhelming combat power can Army forces attain the ideal of quick, decisive victory.
• Combined Arms. Combined arms warfare is the simultaneous application of combat, CS, and CSS toward a common goal.
• Technology. The Army can best use technology in future conflicts only if it is integrated with doctrine. Doctrine must be the engine that drives the exploitation of technology.

PART D--DISCIPLINED OPERATIONS

Army forces apply the combat power necessary to ensure victory through appropriate and disciplined use of force. Discipline begins with trained leaders whose personal example, standard of conduct, concern for soldiers, and loyalty to subordinates create will-disciplined units and proper conduct of operations on the battlefield. Exercising discipline in operations includes limiting collateral damage-the inadvertent or secondary damage as a result of actions by friendly or enemy forces. Good commanders build training programs that forces the practice of law-of-land warfare and rules of engagement (ROE). Every soldier is responsible for preventing violations of the law-of-land warfare. Success results from leadership, discipline, esprit, and professional training.

PART E--THE FOUNDATIONS OF ARMY OPERATIONS

Fundamental to operating successful across the full range of military operations is an understanding of the Army's doctrine foundations-the principals of war and tenets of Army Operations.

The Principles of War. The nine principles of war provide general guidance for the conduct of war at the strategic, operational, and tactical levels. They are the enduring bedrock of Army doctrine.

• Objective. Direct every military operation toward a clearly defined, decisive, and attainable goal.
• Offensive. The means by which a military force seizes and holds the initiative while maintaining freedom of action and achieving decisive results.
• Mass. Synchronizing all the elements of combat power where they will have decisive effect on an enemy force in a short period of time.
• Economy of Force. The judicious employment and distribution of forces.
• Maneuver. The movement of forces in relation to the enemy to gain positional advantage. Successful application of maneuver requires agility of thought, plans, operations, and organizations.
• Unity of Command. Unity of command means that all the forces are under one responsible commander. It requires a single commander with the requisite authority to direct all forces in pursuit of a unified purpose.
• Security. The measures taken by a commander to protect his forces. Knowledge and understanding of enemy strategy, tactics, doctrine, and staff planning improve the detailed planning of adequate security measures.
• Surprise. To strike the enemy at a time or place or in a manner for which he is unprepared. Factors contributing to surprise include speed, effective intelligence, deception, applications of unexpected combat power, operations security, and variations in tactics and methods of operation. Surprise can be in tempo, size of force, direction of location of main effort, and timing. Deception can aid the probability of achieving surprise.
• Simplicity. Prepare clear, uncomplicated plans and concise orders to ensure thorough understanding. Simplicity contributes to successful operations. Simple plans and clear, concise orders minimize misunderstanding and confusion.

The Tenets of Army Operations. The Army's success on and off the battlefield depends on its ability to operate in accordance with five basic tenets: initiative, agility, depth, synchronization, and versatility. The fundamental tenets of Army Operations doctrine describe the characteristics of successful operations. The US Army believes that its five basic tenets are essential to victory.

• Initiative. Initiative sets or changes the terms of battle by action and implies an offensive spirit in the conduct of all operations. In the attack, initiative implies never allowing the enemy to recover from the initial shock of the attack. In the defense, initiative implies quickly turning the tables on the attacker. In operations other than war, initiative implies controlling the environment rather than letting the environment control events.
• Agility. The ability of friendly forces to react faster than the enemy is a prerequisite for seizing and holding the initiative.
• Depth. Depth is the extension of operations in time, space, resources, and purpose. Depth allows commanders to sustain momentum and take advantages of all available resources to press the flight, attacking enemy forces and capabilities simultaneously throughout the battlefield.
• Synchronization. Synchronization is arranging activities in time and space to mass at the decisive point. Synchronization includes, but is not limited to, the massed effects of combat power at the point of decision. The product of effective synchronization is maximum use of every resource to make the greatest contribution to success.
• Versatility. The ability of units to meet diverse mission requirements. Versatility implies a capacity to be multifunctional, to operate across the full range of military operations, and to perform at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels.

PART F--COMBAT POWER

Combat power is created by combining the elements of maneuver, firepower, protection, and leadership. Overwhelming combat power is the ability to focus sufficient force to ensure success and deny the enemy any chance of escape or effective retaliation.

The Dynamics of Combat Power. Four Primary elements--maneuver, firepower, protection, and leadership--combine to create combat power--the ability to fight.

• Maneuver. The movement of combat forces to gain positional advantage, usually in order to deliver, or threaten to deliver, direct and indirect fires.
• Firepower. Firepower provides destructive force. It is essential in defeating the enemy's ability and will to fight. It is the amount of fire that may be delivered by a position, unit, or weapon system.
• Protection. Protection conserves the fighting potential of a force so that commanders can apply it at the decisive time and place. Protection has four components; operation security (OPSEC) health and welfare, safety, and the avoidance of fratricide.
• Leadership. The most essential dynamic of combat power is competent and confident officer and noncommissioned officer leadership. Leaders inspire soldiers with the will to win by providing purpose, direction, and motivation in combat.

Combat Functions. Commanders integrate and coordinate combat functions to synchronize battle effects in time, space, and purpose. The seven combat functions are: Intelligence, Maneuver, Fire Support, Air Defense, Mobility and Survivability, Logistics, and Battle Command.

• Intelligence. Intelligence operations are the organized efforts of a commander to gather and analyze information on the environment of operations and the enemy, and may employ any of the unit's resources in the collection effort. The commander drives the intelligence effort. He must ask the right questions and focus the intelligence work.
• Maneuver. Maneuver is both an element of combat power and a principle of war. It refers to the employment of forces through offensive or defensive operations to achieve relative positional advantage over an enemy force to achieve tactical, operational, or strategic objective.
• Fire Support. The collective and coordinated employment of the fires of armed aircraft, land- and sea-based indirect force systems, and electronic warfare systems against ground targets to support land combat operations at both the operational and tactical levels.
• Air Defense. Provides the force with protection from enemy air attacks, providing the enemy from separating friendly forces while freeing the commander to fully synchronize maneuver and firepower.
• Mobility and Survivability. Mobility operations preserve the freedom of maneuver of friendly forces and include breaching enemy obstacles, increasing battlefield circulation, improving circulation, improving existing routes or building new ones, providing bridge and raft support for crossing rivers, and identifying routes around contaminated areas. Survivability operations protect friendly forces from the effects of enemy weapons systems and from natural occurrences. Hardening of facilities and fortification of battle positions are active survivability measures.
• Logistics. Logistics provide the physical means with which forces operate, from the production base and replacement centers in the US, to soldiers in contact with the enemy.
• Battle Command. Leaders must assimilate thousands of bits of information to visualize the battlefield, assess the situation, and direct the military action required to achieve victory. Command has two vital components--decision making and leadership. Decision making is knowing if to decide, then when and what to decide. Leadership is taking responsibility for decisions, being loyal to subordinates, inspiring and directing assigned forces and resources toward a purposeful courage in the face of adversity, and providing the vision that both focuses and anticipates the future course of events.

Joint Capabilities and Missions. The Army does not fight alone. It integrates its efforts within the theater commander's unified operations along with the other services, other national agencies, and often allied and coalition forces.

• Space Operations. Space-based systems offer significant political and technical advantages to force-projection operations, allowing quick access to certain capabilities without concern for national boundary restrictions. Intelligence, early warning , communication, navigation, mapping, environmental monitoring, missile warning, weather, imagery, and data processing are all enhanced by uninterrupted space operations.

• Force Enhancement. This includes, but is not limited to, communications, navigation, weather, and surveillance support. Commanders use the capabilities of force enhancement to reduce uncertainty, to facilitate command and control (C2) and to moderate the effects of friction.
• Space Control. The conduct of offensive and defensive space operations directed against the enemy's space forces to gain and maintain space superiority.
• Space Support. Provides the military infrastructure to deploy and maintain military space systems.
• Interdiction. Interdiction destroys enemy forces, delays and disrupts their maneuver, and diverts their resources from the main effort. Interdiction is a means to direct combat power simultaneously throughout the depth of enemy forces and hasten enemy loss of initiative and ultimate destruction.

• Air operations. Control of the air gives commanders the freedom to control successful attacks that can neutralize or destroy an enemy's warfighting potential. It also enables land forces to execute operations without interference from an enemy's air forces.

• Strategic Attack. Strategic attacks are carried out against an enemy's center of gravity, which may include national command elements, war production assets, and supporting infrastructure. It focuses on degrading the enemy's capability and possibly its will to wage war. They are designed to affect the entire war effort rather than a single campaign or battle.
• Counterair. The objective of counter-air operations is to gain control of the air environment, Counterair operations are inherently joint, with Army air defense contributing to the effort of the other services. Counterair operations protect friendly forces, ensure freedom to use the aerospace environment to perform other air missions and tasks, and deny the use of that environment to the enemy.
• Air Interdiction. Delays, disrupts, or destroys an enemy's military potential before it can be brought to bear effectively against friendly forces.
• Close Air Support. Support land operations by attacking hostile targets close to friendly ground forces.

• Maritime Operations. Sea control gives commanders the freedom to project power through the strategic and operational movement of forces by sea, to protect sea lines of communications (SLOC's), to secure littoral areas from sea-based threats, and to execute air and land operations from the sea.

• Sea Control. The purpose of sea control operations is to gain control of defined sea areas in the air, on the surface, and under the surface. Naval forces perform antiair warfare, antisubmarine warfare, and antisurface ship tasks in sea control operations.
• Power Projection. Support air and land operations ashore through the application of offensive navy capabilities. Naval forces perform strike warfare, amphibious warfare, and mine warfare in power-projection operations.
• Surveillance and Reconnaissance. These efforts are a part of national intelligence gathering and the systematic observation process. These missions are effected to collect information from airborne, spaced-based, and subsurface sensors. They provide a wide variety of information necessary to the development of national security policy, force posture, planning actions, force employment and informed responses in times of crisis.
• Airlift and Sealift. Airlift provides quick insertion and limited capability to move supplies and equipment for Army Element. Sealift provides the movement of large tonnages of supplies, heavy equipment, and weapons systems over the length of a campaign. Sealift also allows for the projection of power through amphibious landings and transport to ports within or adjacent to the theater of operations. Both elements extend the range of options available to military forces engaged in operations in peace and war. They enable a strategic army to project forces anywhere in the world.

• Special Operations. Actions conducted by specially organized, trained, and equipped military and paramilitary forces to achieve military, diplomatic, economic, or psychological objectives by unconventional means.

• Naval Special Warfare Forces. Support the requirements of sea control and power projection of theater conventional naval forces. They include Sea-Air-Land (SEAL) teams, SEAL delivery vehicle teams, special boat units, and naval special warfare (NSW) units.
• Air Force Operations Forces. Provide aircraft for a variety of special operations force (SOF) missions: infiltrating, exfiltrating, and resupplying SOF, aerial refueling, psychological operations (PSYOP0) and fire support.
• Army Special Operations Forces. There are five types of units: Special Forces, Rangers, Army special operations aviation, PSYOP, and civil affairs. Army special operations forces (ARSOF) are effective in insurgencies, counterinsurgencies, contingency operations, peace operations, and counterterrorism operations. They also participate in foreign internal defense efforts, in humanitarian and civic assistance programs, and in demonstrating UD presence in troubled regions.

• Tactical Units. Army commanders use a variety of army units to generate combat power. Commanders may task-organize maneuver units for a particular mission to improve their combined arms capabilities.

• Infantry. The five types of infantry forces are light, airborne, air assaults, ranger and mechanized. Each has its own special skills and specific organizational design, but all share the common mission to close with and destroy the enemy. Airborne and air assault forces are most readily distinguished by their means of entry into battle. Rangers serve both as a type of infantry and as SOF. Regardless of their mode of conveyance--by aircraft, by armored vehicle, by truck, or by foot--they all serve as a key element of combat power in close combat.
• Armor. In mounted warfare, the tank is the primary offensive weapon. Its firepower, protection from enemy fire, and speed create the shock effect necessary to disrupt or defeat the enemy. Light armored units can participate in a variety of Army operations, including rapid worldwide deployment, throughout a wide range of environments.
• Cavalry. The basic missions of cavalry units are reconnaissance, security, and economy of force. The ability of cavalry units to find the enemy, to develop the situation, and to provide the commander with reaction time and security also make them ideal for operating in an economy-of-force role.
• Army Aviation. The firepower, agility, and speed of Army aviation permit ground commanders to close with and defeat a wide range of enemy forces. Attack helicopters are ideally suited to rapid reaction in close, deep, or rear operations, and can favorably influence the battle when ground forces are decisively engaged. Scout helicopters provide a wide range of armed and unarmed reconnaissance and security capabilities. Utility aircraft provide airmobile and air assault capabilities for dismounted infantry and ground antitank units as well as providing a full range of critical CSS to forces throughout the battlefield.
• Field Artillery. A principal means of fire support in fire and maneuver. Field artillery can neutralize, suppress, or destroy enemy direct fire forces, attack enemy artillery and mortars, and deliver scatterable mines to isolate and interdict enemy forces or protect friendly operations.
• Air Defense Artillery (ADA). ADA provides tactical and operational-level-force protection. They contribute to the intelligence and electronic warfare effort by gathering and disseminating information about the enemy air order of battle. They also contribute to the deep battle by denying the enemy his own reconnaissance and command and control aircraft. They also provide information on enemy surface-to-surface missile launch points to our deep-attack systems.
• Engineers. Engineers execute mobility, countermobility and survivability missions in the forward combat zone and provide sustainment engineering for support forces. Topographic engineers provide terrain analysis and map products.
• Military Intelligence (MI). MI units are capable of exploiting signals, imagery, signatures, counterintelligence, and human intelligence to provide the commander with early warning on enemy intentions, intelligence-preparation-of-the-battlefield, situation development, target development, force projection, and battle damage assessment. They can also direct electronic warfare against enemy C2, fire direction, and electronic guidance systems, as well as provide critical counterintelligence support to friendly command force protection programs.
• Supporting Units. Other units perform CS and CSS functions in wartime and offer a variety of mission capabilities in operations other than war. Chemical, finance, legal, health, service support, military police (MP), personnel, maintenance, ammunition, public affairs, signal, supply, field services, and transportation units are all indispensable to operations and offer a range of capabilities necessary to a versatile force.

PART G--INTELLIGENCE AND ELECTRONIC WARFARE (IEW)
SUPPORT TO MILITARY OPERATIONS

MI accomplishes its mission through six primary tasks which generate intelligence synchronized to support the commanders mission and intelligence requirements: provide indications and warnings, perform intelligence preparation of the battlefield (IPB), perform situation development, perform target development and support to targeting, support force protection, and perform battle damage assessment (BDA).

Indications and Warnings (I&W). The commander uses I&W for early warning to prevent surprise through anticipation and reduce the risk from enemy actions that are counter to planning assumptions.

Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield (IPB). IPB is a systematic, continuous process of analyzing the threat and environment in a specific geographic area.

Situation Development. The analyst takes information collected from all sources under differing circumstances, and concludes the enemy's most probable course of action. The analyst uses intelligence preparation of the battlefield (IPB) to assist in integration of information concerning the enemy, weather, and terrain.

Collection Management (CM) is the use of limited resources to collect the necessary information to answer the commanders intelligence requirements. CM is used to determine the enemy’s capabilities and intentions.

Risk Assessment is weighing the outcome of our own plans against the enemy's capabilities and intentions.

Target Development. This process is employed to provide target locations and to cope with the dilemma of having more targets than attack assets.

High Value Targets (HVTs) are directly related to forces or facilities critical to the enemy and his desired course of action.

High Payoff Targets (HPTs) are selected from the list of HVTs as being critical to the friendly plan. These HPTs are the focus of the friendly collection effort and the maneuver and attack effort.

Electronic Warfare (EW). EW is an element of combat power that locates the enemy and destroys his means to communicate.

Electronic Warfare Support (ES). Actions taken to search for, intercept, locate, and exploit enemy communications (radios) and noncommunications emitters (radars).

Electronic Attack (EA). Uses lethal (directed energy) and nonlethal (jamming) electromagnetic energy to disrupt, damage, destroy, and kill enemy forces.

Electronic Protection (EP). Protects personnel, facilities, or equipment from the effects of friendly or enemy EW which degrades or destroys friendly communications and noncommunications capabilities.

Multidiscipline Counterintelligence (MDCI). MDCI is a multidisciplined effort designed to counter enemy all-source collection attempts. MDCI concentrates on identifying and targeting reconnaissance, intelligence, surveillance, and target acquisition (RISTA) efforts in our rear operations and focuses on the human intelligence (HUMINT) threat. It provides support to deception, rear operations, and OPSEC.

Force Protection. Intelligence operations, MDCI in particular, identify, locate, and target an enemy's ability to target and affect friendly forces, facilities, and operations.

Battle Damage Assessment (BDA). The timely and accurate estimate of damage resulting from the application of military force, either lethal or nonlethal, against an objective or target.

The key players in fusing IEW into the overall tactical concept are the intelligence and operations staffs. Generally, the responsibilities of intelligence belong to the G2/S2, but much coordination is done between them and the G3/S3.

The G2 and S2 are responsible for information regarding the enemy, weather, and terrain. Using what they know about the enemy, they think like enemy commanders and view the battlefield from an enemy point of view. They direct the intelligence effort to reduce uncertainties, provide commanders with estimates, and view patterns of enemy activity that serve as indicators. They direct and process to give meaning and value to seemingly insignificant bits of information.

The G3 and S3 have staff responsibility for planning and directing the OPSEC, deception, and EW operations of the command. They determine the best methods for exploiting the intelligence provided by the G2 and S2.

GO TO: