Keeping the Airborne Division a Viable Force

Abstract

The airborne division, due to its unique forced entry capabilities, plays a major role in contingency planning. Unfortunately, the current air defense threat may jeopardize the success of future airborne assaults onto defended airfields. Although current doctrine permits airdropping some distance away from the objective and outside the range of the air defense weapons, the airborne division does not have sufficient ground tactical mobility to fully realize this option. This study explores the feasibility of an Enhanced Mobility Airborne Battalion (EMAB) to increase the tactical mobility and lethality of the airborne division. It compares the alternative EMAB with the existing Division Ready Brigade (Medium) by comparing the airlift requirements, aircraft survivability, force lethality, force survivability, and sustainability of the two forces. It concludes that the concept is valid and merits further study. Airborne Operations, Airborne division modernization.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 05, 1993
Accession Number
ADA274015

Entities

People

  • James R. Lunsford

Organizations

  • United States Army Command and General Staff College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Defense
  • Aircrafts
  • Airlift Operations
  • Ammunition
  • Artillery
  • Attack Helicopters
  • Attrition
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Databases
  • Doctrine
  • Employment
  • Landing Fields
  • Military Organizations
  • Mobility
  • Second World War
  • Vehicles
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Aerospace logistics and air mobility.
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies
  • Munitions and Ordnance Engineering