Re-Assessing Dismounted Operations in Complex Terrain using the NATO CoBP for C2 Assessment
Abstract
The assessment of dismounted operations in complex terrain remains one of the most challenging problems for the military analysis community. Recently, a study was performed by the U.S. Army Science Board to identify the operational capabilities that were needed to enhance the effectiveness of these operations, with emphasis on C4ISR. This paper uses the NATO Code of Best Practice (CoBP) for C2 Assessment to characterize the key attributes of that study, and to highlight its findings. To establish a context for the study, an extensive data mining activity was undertaken to clarify the key issues and to identify preliminary insights. This activity focused on "lessons learned" reports from actual operations and after-action reports from recent experiments. Based on the results of this data mining, a set of five vignettes was selected that spanned an interesting set of levels of conflict and environmental conditions (e.g., a reverse slope, treeline attack in rugged terrain; defense of a convoy against an ambush in an urban environment; use of low collateral damage weapon technologies in complex terrain; floor clearing operations in a building; humanitarian assistance in a small village). In several of these scenarios, consideration was given to human performance and behavior (e.g., speed at which individuals could move over rugged terrain when wearing loads of specified weight). In many of these scenarios, loss exchange ratios provided the greatest insight into the impact of proposed changes in systems, tactics, techniques, and procedures on force effectiveness. One of the key study challenges involved the acquisition of data of sufficient resolution. These data were employed using a variety of assessment tools, including several constructive simulations (e.g., JANUS, Joint Conflict and Tactical Simulation (JCATS)) and an agent-based model (MANA). These tools provided preliminary assessments of the measures of merit (MoM). (16 briefing charts, 2 refs.)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2003
- Accession Number
- ADA425229
Entities
People
- Edward C. Brady
- Stuart Starr
Organizations
- MITRE Corporation