New Tools for Balancing Theater Combat and Support.
Abstract
When deployments are constrained, an important problem is what to send when doctrine cannot be satisfied. This kind of problem was recognized following the Gulf War, when the Army had difficulty convincing the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Staff of the validity of Army support force deployment requirements. The objective of this project is to help the Army address constrained deployment problems. We do so by providing tools for balancing combat and support deployments when constraints limit the amount of force and support that can be sent at any time. Our approach is to focus on the connections between support and combat planning and to use linear programming (LP) methods to simultaneously schedule support unit deployments and allocate support units in theater. The tools we are developing are designed to help the Army decide what to send and when to send it. This will also help the Army articulate its needs to the Joint commanders who have the final say about deployment plans. Beyond that, the tools we are developing have the potential to address a wide range of force planning and doctrinal issues. The model will allow assessment of the effects of options that range from Force XXI restructuring initiatives to theater stockage policies. The tools we are developing are designed to be used with both existing Army combat simulations and newly developed models.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1996
- Accession Number
- ADA317394
Entities
People
- Brian Leverich
- David Kassing
- Kenneth J. Girardini
- Richard E. Stanton
- Rick Eden
Organizations
- RAND Corporation