Dogmatic belief in the dominance of the land offensive influenced decisions that resulted in years of futile bloodletting on the Western Front in World War I. Termed "the cult of the offensive" by scholars of the Great War, faith in the offense became so unshakable in pre-1914 Europe that military organizations dismissed irrelevant numerous indications of its waning power in the face of technological developments favoring the defense. As we know, the belief that airpower is inherently offensive is a recurrent theme in airpower history and doctrine. Given the predilections of airmen for...

In January and February 1991, Central Command Air Forces (CENTAF) conducted an air-to-ground onslaught against Iraq's Republican Guard. The requirements of this operation conflicted in a number of respects with the US Air Force's extended preparations for conflict on a European battleground. A major case in point involved the low-altitude tactics CENTAF crews had practiced for the previous decade and a half, tactics that were manifestly unsuited for the task that confronted them in Iraq. Colonel Andrews's study, "Airpower against an Army: Challenge and Response in CENTAF's Duel with the...

"America's First Air Battles: Lessons Learned or Lessons Lost?" provides a successful evaluation of Michael Howard's construct that current doctrine is probably wrong, but what matters is the capability of the military to get it right when a particular conflict begins. In the course of this evaluation, Lt. Col. Aldon E. Purdham, Jr. examines several important airpower factors to include familiarity with the nature and geography of the conflict; parity with the adversary, especially in terms of air superiority; command and control of air assets, especially in interdiction and close air support...

It is helpful to view current applications of American airpower in two operational mediums. On the one hand, aircraft and tactics have provided high certainty of air superiority against enemy fighters. On the other hand, American airpower has reached new levels of effectiveness with night-and-day, all-weather, stealth, and precision bombing sustained with surprisingly sensitive surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities for target identification and battle damage assessment. The enforcement of the "no-fly zones" over Iraq, known as Operations Northern and Southern Watch, during the 1990s -...

This study focuses on the current global war on terrorism as a conflict against insurgents who attack US power through asymmetric means. Of late, these individuals have selected as a primary target the military and civilian convoy operations in Iraq and, to some extent, Afghanistan. By examining past examples of the use of airpower in counterinsurgent warfare, this study sheds light on the United States' current failings in both equipment and doctrine as it wages this type of war. The French used low-technology aircraft-World War II-vintage A-1 and T-6 fighters-in Algeria to attack insurgent...

The current USAF process for establishing C-130 PDM intervals does not account for the wide range of aircraft variables within each aircraft MDS. This paper develops an analytical model that C-130 maintainers can use to forecast when a C-130 aircraft requires PDM. The model is based on five unique aircraft variables: 1) aircraft age, 2) total flying hours, 3) average yearly flying hours, 4) mission profile (expressed as a severity factors), and 5) operating location of the aircraft. Interviews with C-130 SPO personnel, combined with the use of the C-130 Service Life Data Base, provided the...

The importance of close air support (CAS) has markedly increased over the last five years in Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Ground forces have increasingly relied on the effects that airpower provides and will continue to do so in the foreseeable future. This has occurred while CAS doctrine and execution have undergone radical changes. While the fundamentals of a serviceperson with a radio calling in air support have remained relatively constant since World War II, the level of mission complexity has steadily increased. Digital communications, precision-guided munitions,...

Nonkinetic warfare, conflict that does not involve using force to inflict physical damage, is rapidly gaining in importance. Scholars of war even from the time of Sun Tzu have articulated that the enemy's destruction is neither essential nor necessarily the best route to ultimate victory. The insurgency attributes that have characterized many wars since World War II suggest that the objective of warfare has shifted from the kinetic destruction of military forces to the nonkinetic impairment of the enemy's will to fight. Four global trends identified in this paper-economic prosperity, freedom...

The legacy of its former status as a colonial power has left France with a strong commitment in Africa. To secure its interests and aspire to a great foreign policy, France has used the cooperation agreements with its former colonies to maintain its influence on the continent, leading the French military to intervene in multiple African crises since decolonization in 1960. This paper addresses the use of airpower during the French military operations in Africa since 1960. Using case study methodology, it emphasizes the operational level of war and analyzes the use of the different French...

Laboratory research that melds physics with materials science has ventured into the design of matter with unique electromagnetic characteristics and response functions. This new class of ordered composites-known as metamaterials-exhibits exceptional, unnatural properties derived from their structure rather than from their composition. These materials promise to provide significant advances in stealth and survivability technology, both of which are highly applicable for future Air Force capabilities against a counter-low observable, directed energy-equipped integrated air defense system. This...