The Pentomic Transition
Abstract
This paper examines what the Army learned as it transformed to operate on a nuclear battlefield, and what elements of that transformation were and were not effective. In the examination of the lessons learned during the Pentomic transformation, three interwoven areas are prevalent in their continued impact: the lessons of doctrinal changes and how we innovated and attempted to adapt to a problem; how the atomic vision of future combat meshed with the technological acquisitions and the capabilities pursued by the Army; the recruitment, conscription, and retention of the personnel needed for the Army to fight in a new way with highly technical weapons. What the Army learned about fighting on a nuclear battlefield, ultimately confirms the dialectic between society, the people in its military, the tools they must use, and the way they use them. An army transition cannot occur in a vacuum, and the transaction between the nation and the military in that transition is a continuous and complex interchange.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 21, 2020
- Accession Number
- AD1158749
Entities
People
- John P. Byler
Organizations
- United States Army Command and General Staff College