Center of Gravity: A Model for the 21st Century Warfighter

Abstract

Joint and service doctrine sufficiently evolved over the past 20 years to better synchronize and simplify their definitions of center of gravity, presenting a sufficient framework within which to conduct an analysis. While opportunities remain for the Marine Corps to increase consistency in the instruction and application of the concept, center of gravity (COG) stands as a still-relevant element in planning, applicable at all levels of war. This paper includes recommendations for joint and USMC doctrine, the USMC officer entry-level training continuum, and an analysis of different models for COG application at the different levels of war. A final recommendation is for the Marine Corps to adapt its primary analysis model to the "Eikmeier" Model for COG analysis, employing a validation test. In the interim, the CARVER targeting model is sufficient but after further analysis, the Marine Corps should identify a COG-specific validation model. Meanwhile, COG analysis/determination would follow Eikmeier + CARVER.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 16, 2018
Accession Number
AD1177132

Entities

People

  • Charles C. Nash

Organizations

  • Marine Corps University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • C4I
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Aircrafts
  • Center Of Gravity
  • Control Systems
  • Department Of Defense
  • Doctrine
  • Education
  • Fire Control Systems
  • Instructions
  • Marine Corps
  • Military Education
  • Military Science
  • Schools
  • Students
  • Training
  • United States
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Computational Modeling and Simulation
  • Hydraulic Engineering.
  • Maritime Combat Support and Expeditionary Logistics.