What Just Happened? A Historical Evaluation of Project CHECO

Abstract

Project Contemporary Historical Examination of Current Operations (CHECO) was an Air Force program during the Vietnam War that employed civilians and active duty officers to write the history of air operations as the war was unfolding. Their products also doubled as a unique tool for operations analysis. The study that follows is an effort to document the history of Project CHECO and evaluate the program both as a work of history and a tool for operations analysis. Chapter 1 records CHECO s story including the personalities, formative guidance, and significant events that shaped the program. Chapter 2 contains profiles of four CHECO reports that are representative of the project s work, evaluating their content for bias, accuracy, and influence on USAF operations. This study concludes that although the authors did a remarkable providing objective and critical studies, the Air Force did not use them to their full potential. The paper closes with some parallels to the documentation and analysis of USAF operations in Afghanistan.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 2013
Accession Number
ADA617002

Entities

People

  • Daniel S. Hoadley

Organizations

  • Air University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • C4I
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Human Systems
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Air Power
  • Combat Areas
  • Command And Control
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Doctrine
  • Employment
  • Geography
  • Lessons Learned
  • Military Force Levels
  • Military History
  • Military Organizations
  • Military Science
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Students
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies
  • Military Science
  • Systems Analysis and Design