Defense for a new era : lessons of the Persian Gulf War / Les Aspin; William L. Dickinson.

"The House of Representatives' official report on Operation Desert Storm, Defense for a New Era discloses what went right, what went wrong, and what was learned for tomorrow's defense planning and budgets. It is the first such congressional postwar analysis ever published. With responsibility to go far beyond the media reports, the House Armed Services Committee interviewed nearly a thousand participants while thoroughly scrutinizing the coalition victory over Iraq. The culmination of that wide-ranging analysis, this book provides unique insights into such crucial topics as personnel, planning and deployment, the bombing and ground campaigns, the role of high technology, logistics, communications, and intelligence. It is a tough, bipartisan evaluation that leads to provocative suggestions for future defense in a rapidly changing world."--BOOK JACKET

Cont.: Issues for the Future -- The New Battlefield Balance -- Mix of Forces -- Communications That Work -- Tactical Missile Defenses -- Makeup of the Post-Cold War Navy -- 1. Operation Desert Storm Examined: Conduct of the War in Southwest Asia -- Historical legacy -- Prelude to War: No Rotation Policy Limits Choices. Air Power: The Most Significant Factor in Winning War. Air Power as an Instrument of War. The Air Tasking Order. Tank Plinking and Other Operation Desert Storm Innovations. Interservice Fights Avoided. Ground Campaign Ultimately Forced Iraqi Military Out of Kuwait. Deception Works. Plans to Fight in Europe Created Problems in Southwest Asia. Using Ground Contingency Units. What the War Reveals About Our Military. High Tech Works. Benefits of High Tech in the Air Campaign. Benefits of High Tech on the Ground. U.S. Troops Most Qualified Ever. Communications Hampered by Old, Incompatible Equipment. Tactical Missile Defenses Succeed Politically, Raise Technical Questions. Minehunting on Land and at Sea. Counting the Iraqi Army. Table I: Accounting for the Iraqi Army. The New Battlefield Balance. New Thinking About Tooth to Tail. Table II: Accounting for the Iraqi Troops: A Rough Estimate of Enemy Strength. Complexity of Warfare Requires Sophisticated Support. Striving for a Balanced Military. Balance in the Force Structure. Balance Within Weapon Systems. Goldwater-Nichols Played a Crucial Role. Goldwater-Nichols Fosters Jointness. Unity of Command Was Key. Jointness Problems Still Remain -- 2. Providing the Forces: U.S. Personnel in the Persian Gulf Crisis. The All Volunteer Force (AVF). Background. How Would the AVF Fight? But Is It Fair? Women in the Services. The Guard and Reserve. Background. Planing for World War III. Mobilization - In Pieces by Improvisation. The Shift to a Offensive Option. Army. The Mobilization. Evolution of the Call-Up. Making Units Ready and Measuring Them. What Happened? etc