Operational design is an intellectual exercise that draws on the creative vision, experience, intuition, and judgment of commanders to provide a framework for development of detailed operation plans. Recently, a number of authors have questioned...
Several theoretical and doctrinal problems limit current US Army understanding of conflict, war and operational art. Those problems include confusion between conflict and war, ambiguity of theoretical terms such as "center of gravity" or...
Field Marshall Viscount Slim holds a special place in modern military history. He soundly defeated the Imperial Japanese Army in Burma in 1945, retaking the strategically important Burma Road, and safeguarding the Chinese Theater from sure...
This monograph examines the role of theory in the development of warfighting concepts and doctrine. It describes the nature and potential importance of theory and provides examples of successful and unsuccessful application of theory in war. The...
As the face of modern warfare changes, the threat of the appearance of guerrilla forces on the battlefield increases. Whether in the form of insurgent forces or partisan forces employing guerrilla tactics in support of conventional forces, their...
The age of reductionism is over, new laws of physics are being discovered, and the old theoretical constructs are being replaced with new understanding. The modern operating environment in common with the world of physics has changed. This change,...
This monograph posits that military practitioners have a theoretical and doctrinal gap in understanding operational art. This threatens to separate tactical action from strategic purpose resulting in battlefield success that is orphaned by...
This monograph analyzes classical warfare and modern warfare to determine whether there is a theoretical shift occurring that is blending the tenets of both of these theories of war. Exploitation of the inherent strengths of each of these theories...
This monograph examines the theoretical linkages between Clausewitz's trinity and the spectrum of conflict, the effect of change on the interpretation of each, and the resultant impact on the concept of operational art. It identifies the common...
This monograph examines the role of the operational level of war to translate strategic objectives into tactical missions. Evidence exists in both the joint and specific service doctrines which suggests that there is a lack of commonality in the...
This monograph addresses how humans think and make sense of the world, and whether the current logic used by the U.S. military is still useful for understanding and influencing a world where complexity continues to increase. Drawing from elements...
'Operational IPB' describes U.S. Army doctrine for the precombat intelligence estimate process employed at the operational level of war. Its methodology is contained in an appendix to a tactical field manual, FM 34-130, Intelligence Preparation of...
The Military Decision Making Process (MDMP) is the U.S. Army’s single analytical process used to assist the commander and staff in developing estimates and plans for military problem solving. A growing body of research and published works within...
This is a theoretical paper on campaign planning. The paper examines the processes and principles involved in campaign plan formulation and modification within the context of all three levels of war. A series of theoretical models are used to...
This monograph questions the utility of military deception (MILDEC) given its decidedly different dynamics inside counterinsurgency (COIN) operations. It examines relevant theoretical touchstones and doctrinal frameworks to determine whether the...
Future operational concepts contained in Joint Vision 2010 and the accompanying service level concepts emphasizes full spectrum, full dimensional dominance, allowing the application of force in time and space that cannot be equaled by a potential...
With the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989, the grip of
superpower strictures loosened resulting in an increase in complexity and dynamism that marks today's security environment. The rapidly changing and uncertain...
As the lethality of new weapons technology increases the need for dispersion, the future battlefield will tend toward nonlinearity. The considerations for tactical mobility in the maneuver phase of the ALB-F concept are essential to determining the...
This monograph examines time estimation at the operational level of war. The study begins with a review of Classical Military Theory to identify the theoretical basis for time estimation. It next examines the Theory of Operational Art to discern...