21.09.2015 Views

BATTLEFIELD OF THE FUTURE

Battlefield of the Future - Air University Press

Battlefield of the Future - Air University Press

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

warfare, space war, precision warfare, and dominating<br />

maneuver? Or will the fear of allied retaliation keep the<br />

adversary from initiating WMD strikes against allied forces,<br />

ports, air bases, and cities?<br />

High-altitude nuclear bursts and the resultant electromagnetic<br />

pulse (EMP) might render most allied space assets<br />

inert . EMP could burn out the circuitry of most allied radio<br />

systems, computers, transistors, and power grids in the region<br />

of combat, rendering many of the allies' high-tech assets<br />

harmless .<br />

Adversaries could also mount NBC weapons on mobile<br />

missile launchers, camouflaged, constantly moved, and<br />

hidden from sight and easy detection . This would create a<br />

targeting nightmare similar to that the allies faced in the Gulf<br />

War against Iraq's Scud missile launchers .<br />

Countermeasures taken to blind US and allied space assets<br />

may rob war-fighting commanders in chief and their staffs of<br />

the information needed to target enemy forces, especially their<br />

highest-valued mobile military assets . After all, missiles and<br />

smart bombs still need correct coordinates to carry out<br />

precision attacks . Further, if the enemy is not blinded<br />

effectively, the dominating maneuvers of future "left hooks"<br />

may be rudely interrupted by catastrophic encounters with<br />

nuclear attacks and anthrax barrages or a battlefield engulfed<br />

in clouds of poison gases .<br />

Would the NBC and missile revolution in military affairs<br />

trump the Warden RMA of parallel war/hyperwar? Would it<br />

overcome the RMA identified by the analysts from Science<br />

Applications International Corporation (SAIC) which emphasizes<br />

the contributions that may be made by changes in a<br />

combination of precision war, space war, information war, and<br />

dominating maneuver technologies, organizations, and<br />

strategies? Or will theater missile defenses emerge that can<br />

neutralize an adversary armed with 20 to 40 NBC warheads<br />

mounted on ballistic and cruise missiles?<br />

Alternatively, even if effective ballistic and cruise missile<br />

defenses are not developed, will the allies' possession of<br />

overwhelming nuclear weapons preponderance be enough to<br />

deter rogue states from using their more limited WMDs once<br />

war has begun? Will deterrence still suffice to keep the peace<br />

269

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!