Command of Coalition Operations in a Multicultural Environment: A Canadian Naval Niche. The Case Study of Operation Apollo

摘要

For the better part of two years, from December 2001 until the end of October 2003, senior Canadian naval officers exercised the unique responsibility of commanding a multinational coalition fleet gathered inthe Arabian Sea, culminating in command of Task Force 151 (CTF 151). This initial stage of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was known in Canada as Operation Apollo. Key to mission success was effective employment of network-enabled operations (NEOps) technology, as well as attention to a variety of cultural factors. In analyzing the operationallevel command function, this paper employs the unifying framework of the'environment- technology-culture' triad, where the three factors of environment (the sea), technology (a major control mechanism for exercising command), and culture (service, organizational, and national)are taken to be the most important factors that impact on naval command styles. It follows with a detailed discussion of each of these factors in the recent Canadian operational context, allowing for the fact that there is some iterative overlap amongst them. The paper concludes that the case study of Operation Apollo demonstrates that the Canadian Navy possesses significant attributes that make coalition naval command a 'niche' role for which it is ideally suited. Eleven briefing charts summarize the presentation.