Command, Control, Communications, Computers, And
GW-4 Command, Control, Communications, And Battle Management August 19, 1994 Page 245 Chapter Four: Command, Control, Communications, Computers, And Battle Management Any discussion of the Gulf War that seeks to derive lessons about command, control, communications, computers, and battle management (C4/BM) must be prefaced with several important caveats. The choice of what to analyze, and how to analyze it, is not a simple one. The Gulf War was one of the most complex conflicts in history, and involved major innovations in command and control.1 o First, the question arises of "lessons for whom?" The Gulf War was fought between a UN Coalition and Iraq, but the UN did not exercise practical command from either UN headquarters or from the field. The US was not simply prima inter pares, it exercised de facto command over most of the planning before the war, controlled the way in which the war was fought, and made the most of the key decisions regarding conflict termination. While there was a joint command in the field, the US led this command in close cooperation with Saudi, British and French commanders. While Egypt, Kuwait, Syria and the other members of the Coalition made national decisions about the role of their forces, they did not play a major role in the overall command system. As a result, command, control, communications, computers, and battle management (C4/BM) during the Gulf War is not representative of a war where the UN exercised direct command, or a multinational command existed in which several nations had to play an equal role.
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