Combat Power: An Ontological Appraoch,

There is a large body of literature which addresses the quantitative and qualitative aspects of combat power. The purpose of this study, however, is to examine the nature of combat power and to develop a conceptual framework for gaining an understanding of what it is. The methodology consists of a review of the literature and an analysis of historical data. Concetps are grounded in empirical reality by briefly analyzing our more recent application of force on a large scale--Vietnam. A detailed analysis of the Battle of Kontum, Spring 1972, is provided to illustrate some of the key concepts. The author argues that the key element of combat power in the future will be relative mobility and that the increasing effectiveness of fire in the form of mines and PGMs has seriously eroded the relative mobility of armored vehicles. A major assertion of the study is that an attrition strategy can be avoided on the Central Front of Europe if NATO forces rely more heavily on helicopters to provide greater relative mobility. Author