Operational Overreach or Academic Under Reach: Preventing Culmination Through Sustainment
Abstract
General Dwight D. Eisenhower's, Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Forces, Lieutenant General Bedell Smith, wrote in Eisenhower's Six Great Decisions that "it is no great matter to change tactical plans in a hurry and send troops off in new directions. But adjusting supply plans to the altered tactical scheme is far more difficult." These words still hold true today. During the invasion of Iraq in 2003, US supply lines extended over three hundred miles from Kuwait into Iraq. Similarly, between August 1944 and September 1944, Lieutenant General George Patton extended his supply lines over three hundred miles in his pursuit of German forces across Europe. The difference between the two is that one operation was able to maintain its operational reach while the other culminated. Operational reach and culmination are separated by a fine line and are both necessary considerations when planning and executing operations. James Huston wrote that logistics culmination and operational logistics pauses are a common event in the US war experience. Current US Army sustainment doctrine, ADRP 4-0 warns that sustainment failure can cause an unanticipated pause or worse, a culmination of an operation resulting in a loss of initiative. This makes it critical that the Commander is able to consider when, where, and who to pause during operations. The research determines if current US Army sustainment doctrine and sustainment curriculum are mutually supporting in such a way that enables sustainment planners to maintain operational reach and prevent culmination. Vital to determining this is the assessment of two things. First, does current sustainment curriculum capture the concept and requirement of operational reach as articulated in current Army doctrine. Second, does current sustainment curriculum produce sustainers that are capable of balancing the art and science of sustainment?
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 10, 2013
- Accession Number
- ADA606207
Entities
People
- Stephen Magner
Organizations
- United States Army Command and General Staff College