Setting the Context: Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses and Joint War Fighting in an Uncertain World

摘要

Suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD) has long been a critical concern to advocates of air power. It is especially critical to Pacific Air Forces because air power offers a primary means of responding rapidly and effectively to areas of conflict within the Pacific arena. Lt. Colonel James R. Brungess was selected in February 1991 to conduct research into developing joint SEAD tactics that would be useful in the Pacific Command area of operations, specifically for the Far Eastern Military District of the Soviet Union. The world, however, changed dramatically while he was conducting his study. This altered both the character and direction of his research effort. In a few short months from March to December 1991, the United States entered a new era heralded by Desert Storm and the collapse of the Soviet Union. In the span of less than a year, the U.S. Air Force vindicated the time-honored doctrine and strategies of air power in Desert Storm and lost its most powerful adversary with the demise of the Soviet Union in December 1991. While the same weapons continue to exist, these events have irreversibly changed the context in which they will be used. Both events have not only changed the shape of the world; they have forever altered the way we look at air power and, more importantly, the way we must use air power. This book explains why SEAD has changed the basic fabric of air warfare. In discussing the familiar themes of the past and the emerging paradigms of the future, the author weaves a web of changing interrelationships among services, politico-military structures, and research and development strategies, as well as developing a novel methodology for assessing events critical to air power's future. It places SEAD within the context of a changed world by defining relationships, explaining evolutionary patterns, establishing a criterion to measure success, as well as pointing the way for future joint tactics development. (11 tables, 28 figures).