One good thing about OODA

[ericmwalters]

Reed11b wrote:

My point was that there are other means of gaining the intangibles of the non-complementary supports that are being pushed down to lower echelons then are ideal to support them.

Because we Marines typically live hand-to-mouth, we've been pretty inventive and innovative in rigging field expedient means. I wish the institution was better at formalizing some of these very successful arrangements.

With regard to UASs, it's been a mixed bag. DRAGON EYE hasn't been as good as we wanted for a battalion-level disposable UAV--mostly because it's not truly disposable. One goes down, we often send out a patrol to recover it. That really bugs me. WASP has been much better for the companies. Sure, we don't have the parts, maintenance tail. But our rationale has been to treat these assets as expendables, like batteries or ammunition.

Regarding air support, we pretty much live in a different world than anyone else. We generally don't find our fixed wing close air support pulled off for any "higher priority mission." If we lose air support, it's usually due to low visibility/adverse weather, even with the vaunted F/A-18D "All-Weather" fighter/bomber. Marine air exists to support ground forces--it's our "flying artillery." It exists for that purpose first and foremost. This is usually hard for our Army brethren to get used to. Trust me, I've seen the kind of close air support the USAF provides in wartime. It cannot possibly compare. USAF air has a bazillion competing missions. We don't.

When I was the G2 of 3d MAW in OIF I, we had scores and scores of targets for "joint air" over 3d ID/V Corps on the "March Up" to Baghdad. These aircraft would be burning gas in CAS stacks waiting for a target. The ASOC either wasn't getting many nominations or couldn't process them fast enough--I defer to any knowledgable USAF readers who were there to explain what happened. But these A/C would be running low on fuel and then "cross the line" over our boundary and we'd hand them a target. 3d ID only had a couple of divisions to deal with outside of Baghdad. I MEF had a bunch--I think I can recall roughly eight or so. We had no shortage of stuff to shoot up.

Still, there's lot of OODA Loop reducing measures we can take. When I was a tank officer, I had no Forward Air Controller (FAC). I also had no Forward Observer (FO). We had nothing like a FIST. I'd do my own calls for fire. I'd do my own "nine-lines" for bringing close air support on target. The infantry had FACs and had FOs. I didn't. My tank loader would help me work up the calls for fire and close air support missions while I was on the platoon net running my other four tanks, or talking to the company commander on the company net, or yakking to my tank crew as I was maneuvering (and sometimes shooting) my tank. I was a pretty busy guy as platoon commander with all the "turret tasks" I had to execute. But I could (and did) bring down my own fire support, thank you very much. And if I could do it, there's no reason why a squad leader or platoon sergeant/platoon leader can't. Without at FAC. Without a FO. We need to expand this to include ISR support--UASs tied to Off the Shelf Video Receiver Terminals (OSVRTs) and--even better--ROVER III with laptops and a voice comm link (NOT mIRC Chat!) to the sensor payload operator/UAS pilot/mission commander.

But I imagine "stosstruppen on steroids" these days, where sergeants can collaborate and cooperate in ground operations to execute recon-pull type operations. We're a long way from doing that across the USMC. Maybe some day. I'm hoping Enhanced Company Operations (ECO) will point the way. I could be grossly naive, but a man can dream, can't he?