From Factory to Foxhole: In-Transit Visibility in Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Beyond

Abstract

Operation Desert Storm demonstrated that there were serious problems with asset tracking, particularly with in-transit visibility, in our logistics system. In the modern age of joint warfare, this difficulty degrades the ability of the Joint Force Commander to exercise freedom of action in prosecuting a vigorous and flexible operation. Operation Iraqi Freedom, executed in essentially the same location twelve years later, demonstrated that there are still great difficulties with in-transit visibility. There were a variety of reasons for this continued degradation on our logistics system, including poor execution of existing doctrine, failure to integrate various logistics information systems for a common operating picture, and insufficient bandwidth to handle the load of a common logistics operating picture. In order to resolve these difficulties, more attention must be paid to integrating logistics management into the network-centric battlefield, allowing the Joint Force Commander to exercise oversight and control of his logistics streams with much more effect.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 16, 2004
Accession Number
ADA425980

Entities

People

  • A. D. Whittaker Jr

Organizations

  • Naval War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • C4I
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Battlefields
  • Deployment
  • Identification Systems
  • Information Systems
  • Iraqi-War
  • Lessons Learned
  • Logistics
  • Logistics Management
  • Military Equipment
  • Military Operations
  • Supply Chain Management
  • United States Central Command
  • United States Transportation Command
  • War
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Aerospace logistics and air mobility.
  • Joint Military Operations and Doctrine.
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies