What is the Role of Heavy Armor in the Army of 2020?
Abstract
With operations in Iraq complete and the transition out of Afghanistan ongoing, what is the role of the heavy armor force in the Army of 2020? Although several senior leaders have stated that armor will play a significant role in the future, none have articulated what that role will be. As the Army deals with force reduction and economic constraints, it also must prepare a future fighting force to succeed against competitors who will employ all forms of warfare and tactics, perhaps simultaneously. As the Israeli Defense Force learned during the Second Lebanon War, only well-prepared ground forces can defeat a hybrid threat in complex terrain. This monograph seeks to convince the reader that to achieve overmatch in decisive action while sustaining minimal casualties, it must employ the right mix of heavy armor and infantry forces in future operating environments. Through an analysis of the U.S. strategic context, the Army operating concept, and armor force capabilities, the monograph will prove that the heavy armor force is the most capable element in both wide area security and combined arms maneuver. If employed properly, tanks and infantry fighting vehicles can provide mobile and precise firepower to close with and destroy a hybrid threat during unified land operations. Although, dismounted infantry squads remain essential to U.S. expeditionary capability, the mobile firepower provided by armored forces quickly overmatches and defeats enemy combatants. The heavy armor force capabilities of mobility, firepower, and protection, when employed with supporting systems of dismounted infantry and artillery, provide the overmatch necessary to fight and win against the hybrid threats of 2020.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 06, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA570044
Entities
People
- Elliott L. Rogers
Organizations
- United States Army Command and General Staff College