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Learning Large Lessons: the Evolving Roles of Ground Power and Air Power in the Post-Cold War

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Learning Large Lessons: the Evolving Roles of Ground Power and Air Power in the Post-Cold War THE ARTS This PDF document was made available CHILD POLICY from www.rand.org as a public service of CIVIL JUSTICE the RAND Corporation. EDUCATION ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT Jump down to document6 HEALTH AND HEALTH CARE INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit NATIONAL SECURITY research organization providing POPULATION AND AGING PUBLIC SAFETY objective analysis and effective SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY solutions that address the challenges SUBSTANCE ABUSE facing the public and private sectors TERRORISM AND HOMELAND SECURITY around the world. TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE WORKFORCE AND WORKPLACE Support RAND Purchase this document Browse Books & Publications Make a charitable contribution For More Information Visit RAND at www.rand.org Explore RAND Project AIR FORCE View document details Limited Electronic Distribution Rights This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law as indicated in a notice appearing later in this work. This electronic representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for non- commercial use only. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of our research documents. This product is part of the RAND Corporation monograph series. RAND monographs present major research findings that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND mono- graphs undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity. Updated Edition NEW Learning Large Lessons The Evolving Roles of Ground Power and Air Power in the Post–Cold War Era David E. Johnson Prepared for the United States Air Force Approved for public release; distribution unlimited The research described in this report was sponsored by the United States Air Force under Contract F49642-01-C-0003. Further information may be obtained from the Strategic Planning Division, Directorate of Plans, Hq USAF. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Johnson, David E., 1950– Learning large lessons : the evolving roles of ground power and air power in the post-Cold War era / David E. Johnson. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. “MG-405.” ISBN 0-8330-3876-1 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. United States—Armed Forces. 2. Military doctrine—United States. 3. United States—Armed Forces—Operations other than war. 4. Air power—United States. 5. Unified operations (Military science) 6. Operational art (Military science) I. Title. UA23.J57 2006 355.4'20973—dc22 2005030914 The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit research organization providing objective analysis and effective solutions that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors around the world. RAND’s publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors. R® is a registered trademark. Cover photo: Several of the generals who developed and employed the air-ground cooperation system for the U.S. 12th Army Group during World War II in Western Europe at Fort Ehrenbreitstein, Koblenz, Germany on April 6, 1945. From left to right: Lieutenant General George S. Patton, Jr., 3d Army; Major General Otto Paul “Opie” Weyland, XIX Tactical Air Command; General Omar N. Bradley, 12th Army Group; Major General Hoyt S. Vandenberg, Ninth Air Force; Lieutenant General Courtney H. Hodges, First Army; and Major General Elwood R. “Pete” Quesada, IX Tactical Air Command. U.S. Army photograph, collection of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, courtesy of the U.S. National Park Service. © Copyright 2007 RAND Corporation All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means (including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval) without permission in writing from RAND. Published 2007 by the RAND Corporation 1776 Main Street, P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138 1200 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA 22202-5050 4570 Fifth Avenue, Suite 600, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-2665 RAND URL: http://www.rand.org/ To order RAND documents or to obtain additional information, contact Distribution Services: Telephone: (310) 451-7002; Fax: (310) 451-6915; Email: [email protected] Preface This monograph poses the hypothesis that U.S. post–Cold War mili- tary operations have witnessed a shift in the relative roles of ground power and air power in warfighting, but the joint warfighting potential of this shift is not being fully realized. It examines five military opera- tions—Iraq (1991), Bosnia (1995), Kosovo (1999), Afghanistan (2001), and Iraq (2003)—to test this hypothesis. In the process, this study examines the continuing service dominance in U.S. joint warfight- ing concepts and the fact that warfighting success does not necessar- ily achieve a strategic political end state that supports U.S. long-term interests. A revision of the original monograph published in 2006, this edition incorporates recent changes to joint and service doctrines and adds an index. The research reported here was sponsored by Christopher Bowie, Deputy Director, Air Force Strategic Planning, Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Programs, Headquarters U.S. Air Force (AF/XPX). It was conducted within the Strategy and Doctrine Program of RAND Project AIR FORCE. The monograph should be of interest to policy- makers in the Department of Defense, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the U.S. Joint Forces Command, and to those in the armed services concerned with concept development, doctrine, and weapon system acquisition. iii iv Learning Large Lessons RAND Project AIR FORCE RAND Project AIR FORCE (PAF), a division of the RAND Corpo- ration, is the U.S. Air Force’s federally funded research and develop- ment center for studies and analyses. PAF provides the Air Force with independent analyses of policy alternatives affecting the development, employment, combat readiness, and support of current and future aero- space forces. Research is conducted in four programs: Aerospace Force Development; Manpower, Personnel, and Training; Resource Manage- ment; and Strategy and Doctrine. Additional information about PAF is available on our Web site at http://www.rand.org/paf. Contents Preface ............................................................................. iii Figure and Tables ................................................................ ix Summary .......................................................................... xi Acknowledgments ............................................................ xxiii Abbreviations ................................................................... xxv CHAPTER ONE Introduction ....................................................................... 1 Study Scope and Methodology ................................................... 2 Study Scope: The Range of Military Operations and Focused Learning...................................................................... 2 Study Methodology.............................................................. 7 CHAPTER TWO The Relationship Between American Ground Power and Air Power Before the End of the Cold War........................................... 9 CHAPTER THREE Iraq, 1991..........................................................................21 Background ........................................................................21 Lessons: The Ground-Centric View ............................................25 Lessons: The Air-Centric View ................................................. 26 Areas of Ground-Air Tension................................................... 27 Who Won the War? ........................................................... 27 v vi Learning Large Lessons Lesser-Included Tensions...................................................... 34 The Institutionalization of “Lessons” from the Gulf War................... 40 Immediate Ground-Centric Lessons ........................................ 43 Immediate Air-Centric Lessons .............................................. 46 The Failure to Create Joint Doctrinal Solutions.............................. 48 The Continuing Debate About Who Owns the Battlespace ..............49 The War in Bosnia ..............................................................53 The Halt Phase Concept ...................................................... 56 CHAPTER FOUR Kosovo, 1999 .....................................................................65 Background ........................................................................65 Ground-Centric View ........................................................... 68 Air-Centric View ..................................................................76 The Appropriate Use of Air Power ........................................... 77 Improving Air Power Performance ...........................................78 Areas of Ground-Air Tension....................................................82 CHAPTER FIVE Afghanistan, 2001 ...............................................................91 Background ........................................................................91 Ground-Centric View: Strategic and Operational Lessons ................. 94 Air-Centric View ................................................................. 96 Ground-Air Tensions and the Tactical Ground-Centric Lessons of Operation Anaconda .................................................... 97 CHAPTER SIX Iraq, 2003 ....................................................................... 105 Background ...................................................................... 105 A Joint Ground-Centric
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