In 1943 Allied forces had seen some success in North Africa against the Axis forces. Allied commanders were at odds whether to continue the Mediterranean campaign or execute a cross channel invasion. By January of 1943, Allied commanders seemed content just to keep pressing Axis forces in the Mediterranean, Sicily would be next. Operation Husky, the Allied code name for the invasion of Sicily, eventually led to Allied victory. However, the victory was in spite of numerous Joint Command and Control and function integration deficiencies. Proper planning, execution and leadership, in accordance with joint doctrine, would have provided for a more decisive victory. Additionally, doctrinally correct prosecution of Operation Husky would have likely shortened the battle, prevented Axis forces from evacuating and conserved Allied resources. In this two part essay, I will evaluate Command and Control (C2) and integration of joint functions at the operational level throughout Operation Husky. Joint and …show more content…
Mission command orders allow Warfighters to carry out the commander’s intent as the mission or environment changes. This allows leaders to use disciplined initiative in order to continue to exploit the objective. Trust and a common understanding of the commander’s intent and end state are critical supporting elements of mission command. General Dwight Eisenhower was the Allied Commander in Chief for Operation Husky. Therefore, it was General Eisenhower’s responsibility to develop and coordinate his intent. The orders process should have conveyed a “clear and concise expression of what the force must do and the conditions the force must establish to accomplish the mission” to his British Land, Air and Naval Deputy Commanders. However, the commander’s intent and end state for Operation Husky was not well defined or
On July 30, 2008, a bloody battle involving Coalition forces took place in the mountainous eastern Afghan province of Nuristan. This was the Battle of Wanat and the devastating amount of Coalition casualties began a vigorous investigation by the United States Army. The village of Wanat, defended by Second Platoon, Chosen Company, Second Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team would fall victim to numerous bad decision made by higher command. Although the men of Chosen Company fought hard, they ended up surrounded, vastly outnumbered, and without any Battalion assets. This paper will argue the reasons for the disastrous outcome of the Battle of Wanat; examining the effective company leadership exploiting effective
Analyzing the mission command principles and the commanding officer’s actions will also be discussed. Specifically, as it relates to building a cohesive team through mutual trust, providing a clear commander’s intent, and accepting prudent risk. While the battle of Fort Riviere and the resulting occupation of Haiti occurred over a century ago, it provides us with an example of American foreign policy during this period and bares resemblance to future American military
Mission command and understanding the mission were critical to whether he and his Soldiers would be successful or not. Throughout the deployment, his firm understanding of operations and concern for the operational environment led to accomplishments and breakthroughs for the Iraqi people and his division with the implementation of governance, civil authorities, and overall improvement of
seventh army in the invasion of Sicily on July 10th, 1943. With both the British eighth army and the American seventh army, the invasion of Sicily, also known as “Operation Husky”, became the largest land and sea operation in regards to number of men involved, in the entirety of World War II. Patton’s job in this invasion was to lead the U.S. seventh army to protect the left flank of the British eighth army as they moved towards Messina. With a lot of determination, Patton made the decision to not follow original plans and lead his fleet to Palermo and then ended up reaching Messina before the British troops did. Although Patton helped lead the Allies to success with this invasion, his act of defiance ended with a number of repercussions.
Major General Sir Arthur William Currie believed preparation was the key to ultimate success: “Thorough preparation must lead to success. Neglect nothing.” (Brewster 16) An analysis of Currie’s reliance on preparation, his tactical modus operandi, and his strategic approach reveals that Arthur Currie elevated strategic and tactical thinking to the realm of high art while commanding Canadian Forces during World War 1. By doing so, he manifested all of the qualities of precise planning.
The topic of this writing assignment is the Brigade Aviation Element. In today’s day and age, waging a war has never been more complex for commanders. In an ever-evolving battlefield advanced weapons, assets, technology, and information have become both a blessing and a curse to commanders. In a high-paced unforgiving environment, commanders are required to make accurate effective decisions at a moment’s notice. One of the greatest challenges for ground force commanders has been effectively utilizing Army aviation assets in coordination with the ground effort.
The CJCS also outlines and writes the National Military Strategy provided to Combatant Commanders as military context and translation of the National Defense
Book Review 2: Soldiers, Statesmen, and Cold War Crises by Richard Betts Summary: Betts starts off his book by recognizing the ambiguity around the advocacy of the use of force in a crisis by military leaders even though there is a prevalent assumption that military professionals are more aggressive than diplomats and politicians. He states he writes the book in order to provide a comprehensive survey of the postwar role of American military men in decisions on their most essential function, their use of force in combat. Betts acknowledges the vast availability of literature on military participation in decisions on defense budgets and weapons procurement, but feels there is a void when looking at decision-making from the perspective of military leadership versus civilian leadership.
General Patton, in the Battle of the Bulge exercised the principles of mission command to the fullest and they yielded significantly great results for the Allied forces. General Patton employed each of the principles in different ways in order to ensure that the German surprise attack did not significantly set back the Allied forces in the war. The exercise of mission command allows a commander to conduct military operations and missions through dispersed execution. According to Army Doctrine Publication (ADP) 6-0, Mission Command, the definition of mission command is “the exercise of authority and direction by the commander using mission orders to enable disciplined initiative within the commander’s intent to empower agile and adaptive leaders in the conduct of unified land operations”. General Patton exhibited four of the mission command principles extremely well during the Battle of the Bulge.
The Allied Invasion was a complete success, they were able to make their attack quick while the troops protecting France were small in number and not expecting attack. Prior to the invasion The Allies serving under General Patton, created a diversion. This deception was directed to confuse the Axis into thinking the invasion was to take place elsewhere. Known as “Patton’s Ghost Army”, its main goal was to convince the Axis command into believing that the Allied invasion would land in either Greece or the countries of Norway or Denmark. Because the Germans and other Axis troops did not know where the invasion would hit, they divided and tried to cover as much South Eastern European coastline as possible.
Scribbles on Scrap: A Mission Command Analysis of the Battle of the Little Bighorn The massacre at the Little Bighorn in 1876 was one of the most recognizable battles in American history. The defeat of the 7th Cavalry Regiment and the slaughter of 268 Soldiers by the Sioux serves as an enduring subject of study for contemporary military professionals. The basic modus operandi for command principles in the times of the Indian Wars loosely mirrors the mission command philosophy of today; however, if we still lay credence to the efficacy of the mission command philosophy, how was it that a conventional force under the direction of a battle proven leader was defeated by an irregular enemy? In the end, Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer’s complacent
By definition, “mission command is the exercise of authority and direction by the commander using mission orders to enable disciplined initiative within the commander’s intent to empower agile and adaptive leaders in the conduct of unified land operations,” according to ADRP 5-0. Mission command is about knowing when to change the task to fit the purpose. This paper is intended to analyze the mission command of one side of the battle, focusing on the commander’s role in the operations process. The Battle of Bunker Hill was the most important battle of the American Revolution because of Colonel Prescott’s superior command and control.
The overall goal, or ends, of defeating Germany first, before defeating Japan, was agreed upon. The British argued for the earliest possible defeat of Germany over diverting forces to the Pacific. Eventually, allied leaders agreed that the way to defeat Germany first began with the strategy to fight in the Mediterranean theater. This included the invasion of Sicily and Italy before a cross-channel attack into Europe. The Combined Bomber Offensive and antisubmarine warfare were given priority as strategic concepts, or ways, to achieve allied objectives.
Joint Planning for Operation Anaconda SFC Spurlock, Matthew MLC Class 005-18 Joint Planning for Operation Anaconda Since the beginning of the Global War on Terrorism, there have been numerous battles. One of the most important battles that shaped future joint planning of operations was Operation Anaconda. The outcome of this operation was ultimately successful, however, the original intent from the commanders were not met due to errors in the joint planning process. Joint planning during Operation Anaconda proved ineffective because of inaccurate intelligence about the terrain and weather, the exemption of Air Force and Navy during the initial planning phase, and false assumptions about the enemy. Intelligence Intelligence Preparation
Returning to the 4th Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) to assume command as the brigade commander brings me much joy to be reunited with great Non-Commission Officers and Officers that I have previously served with. Unfortunately, this brigade is no longer the brigade I remember when I commanded a battalion within the 4th ABCT not so long ago. In the last 30 days, I have had the opportunity to observe the ABCT and review a multitude of historical documents to assess the state of the brigade. During my observation, I believe the critical leadership problem in the 4th ABCT’s is the lack of vision for the brigade. Therefore, this critical problem has led to other challenging issues within the brigade.