Overview
Understand the causes, outcome and impact of Operation Desert
Storm
Understand how military aviation and national defense strategy
fundamental changed as the result of Operation Desert Storm
Classroom Exercise
What Everyone Didn’t Know
The success of Operation Desert Storm’s air campaign was a culmination of
a shift in airpower strategy enabled not only by precision weapons, but the
very nature in which airpower was organized, planned and even led.
Development of the Joint Force Air Component Commander
Development of the Air Tasking Order
Air Tasking Order (ATO)
The JFACC's overall strategy for the air campaign was set forth in the
Master Attack Plan (MAP) – the daily strategy or “schedule” was the ATO
Weapon system experts from across the JFACC staff worked together with
coalition partners, intelligence, logistics, and weather experts to outline
every part of an aircraft’s flight – from take-off to landing.
Air Tasking Order (ATO)
Simultaneously
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4…
Boyd’s OODA Loop on Steroids?
Type of Aircraft, Take-off and Land Time
Call Sign: Oderon
Target Location, Time Over Target, Weapons Used
Air Refueling Plan and Support Plan
War Tonnage /Length / Tonnage Per Month
WW II: 2,150,000 / 45 months / 47,777.78
Korea: 454,000 / 37 months / 12,270.27
Vietnam: 6,162,000 / 140 months / 44,014.29
Gulf War: 60,624 / 1.5 months / 40,416.00
Impact of the Air Campaign
Operation Desert Storm’
Commanders identified the Iraqi
Republican Guard as a vital
target.
Not every Republican Guard
division was hit equally hard;
those in the path of the planned
Coalition ground forces received
the brunt of the attacks.
The CENTCOM Commander
directed that comparatively
greater damage be inflicted on
the front-line forces to reduce
Coalition ground forces'
casualties.
Lessons Learned
High Tech Precision Weapons enabled a revolution in military strategy,
but changes in command, strategy, organization and joint/coalition
cooperation is what made the revolution work
When airpower works it can have a very powerful effect, sometimes not
always what was anticipated
Airpower took its place as a dominate part of warfare, but it must be
part of a overall comprehensive strategy to truly be effective
Keep the last
lesson in mind as
we look at Bosnia
and Kosovo later
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