Joining Forces: Preparing to Fight Coalition Air War.

摘要

This study analyzes of the extant preparations of the United States Air Force (USAF) to conduct coalition air warfare. It seeks to answer the following question: How should the USAF prepare for coalition air warfare? The simplicity of the question masks the complexity of the answer. To arrive at the optimal answer, it is important to understand the topic's relevance and the basis of the study's argument, along with its limitations. This study is relevant for three reasons. First, the nation's strategy emphasizes the use of coalitions for both security and warfare. Next, the nation faces resource deficiencies that require coalition participation in security and warfare. Finally, recent events suggest that the preference for and reality of coalition air warfare will probably increase. The argument of this thesis unfolds in three steps. Following the introduction that describes the study's evidence and methodology, Chapter 2 examines the literature of coalition war, discovers verities about that form of war, and derives a framework for coalition war. The third chapter refines the analytical framework, as it applies to war in the air. It does so by examining three historical instances of coalition air war and the preparation for each of them: Operation Husky (Jul-Aug 1943), Operation Allied Force (Mar-Jun 1999), and Operation Enduring Freedom (Oct 2001- Mar 2003). Chapter 4 uses the framework from Chapter 3 to survey USAF doctrine and strategy and the initiatives associated with both that focus on preparing for coalition air war. Here, the thesis principally examines two geographical regions: the European-Atlantic region and Asia-Pacific region. The synthesis of chapters 2-4 allows for conclusions and suggestions in the final chapter regarding the Air Force's current preparation for coalition war.