It would be interesting to see how the current version of Field Manual 3-0 defines the operational level of war in relation to the other two levels. An earlier edition of the manual had a murky and verbose definition, as though the authors of the draft manual tried to use as many comments as possible received during the staff review process. Like a case of "too many cooks spoiling the broth," possibly the original definition was fairly cogent until numerous comments on DA Form 2028 were incorporated. I'd also be curious to see how the operational level is defined in Bundeswehr manual 100-100, Command and Control in Battle, since consistency with that manual is said to have been the original reason for the change to FM 100-5 many years ago. It would be a bit like knowing what the Founding Fathers had in mind when they wrote the Second Amendment.