Achieving Strategic Effects With Army Attack Aviation

The United States Army is transforming into a lighter force while simultaneously becoming involved in a growing worldwide spectrum of joint operations. The problem is that future warfare may not permit the marshalling of large fixed-wing air armadas to wage strategic air campaigns. Thus, the central research question is: Can Army attack aviation achieve strategic effects? Using a table of typical theater strategic targets and desired effects derived from current joint doctrine and the principles of effects-based operations, the capabilities of the Army’s attack aviation were tested. Additionally, two case studies, Operation Earnest Will and Operation Allied Force (Task Force Hawk), provided historical examples of independent Army attack aviation deployments in direct support of a theater commander’s strategic objectives. With its unique abilities of observation, instant battle damage assessment, precision weapons employment with the AGM-114 Hellfire missile, and in the case of Operation Earnest Will, rapid deployment, the Army’s attack aviation can have decisive effects on many theater strategic targets. Army attack aviation does have weaknesses, such as doctrinal traditions, weather capability, range, and enemy air defense vulnerability, but none of these weaknesses restrict its employment in a strategic role.This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.