Development of the Heavy-Light Corps
Abstract
Beginning with the withdrawal of forces from South Vietnam in 1969, the size of the active Army dropped by almost 50% from close to 1.6 million men in 1969 to less than 800 thousand by 1974. The accelerated withdrawal schedule of 1970-72, coupled with the uncertainties of maintaining adequate forces without the draft and the requirements of other services for increased funds, pointed to further reductions of the active Army. In 1973, the Chief of Staff of the Army told Congress that the Army proposed by the President in the FY 74 budget would be capable of deploying a corps anywhere in the world without mobilization. Actions taken by the Army to develop and evaluate the corps size force are examined as well as the guidance provided by the Secretary of Defense. The current status of the force is discussed and future actions are recommended in the area of readiness, training, combat service support, force structure, and management. The paper is UNCLASSIFIED to facilitate its use as a reference for students but includes an annotated bibliography of all classified and unclassified documents pertaining to the development of the heavy-light corps concept.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 23, 1975
- Accession Number
- ADA014179
Entities
People
- James M. Compton
Organizations
- United States Army War College