Is Joint Close Air Support Close Enough for the Operational Commander?

Abstract

Close air support (CAS) has been an integral part of the operational commander's scheme of maneuver since World War II and Korea. Since that time, each service has continued to refine its tactics, techniques, and procedures for conducting CAS. However, the amount and type of training devoted to CAS has varied between the services. The emphasis and quality of training has had a direct impact on the success or failure of battlefield execution. Recent operations in Afghanistan and Iraq have proven that Joint" execution of CAS is continuing to improve. Both of these operations have also shown that there still needs to be improvement in our execution of JCAS. This paper will discuss lessons learned from previous operations to prove that JCAS will not only be relevant in the future - requiring a continued emphasis on its training - but that its continued improvement at the operational level of war will require more joint training at the tactical level.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 13, 2006
Accession Number
ADA463482

Entities

People

  • Simon Doran

Organizations

  • Naval War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Air Power
  • Battlefields
  • Combat Areas
  • Combat Operations
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Iraqi-War
  • Lessons Learned
  • Military Operations
  • Military Organizations
  • Military Training
  • Tactical Air Support
  • Training
  • United States Central Command
  • War
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

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