In Search of a New Logistics Paradigm: Operation Joint Endeavor as an Operational and Strategic Watershed

In the face of its largest drawdown since 1945, the United States Army of the 1990s has deployed 25 times with a force that is the smallest it has been in nearly 60 years. The most recent deployment, code named OPERATION JOINT ENDEAVOR, is an exemplar of the contemporary American Army, one that is far more likely to carry its arms yet never discharge them. Indeed, since the Gulf War of more than 6 years ago, it is peace operations sending the average soldier away from home almost half of every year that has punctuated the peace dividend that our armed forces were expected to reap from the implosion of the Soviet Union in 1989. This study examines what it posits to be the new center of gravity of the United States Army, logistical operations, in light of the shift away from armed conflict. It seeks to determine if and how a new paradigm of logistics strategy and doctrine might be emerging in this Army. Further, it suggests that the Army not only has shifted toward logistically based operations as its core, but also that the center of that locus now has shifted from an active force supported by reservists to one where the responsibilities are shared almost equally. The research traces the role played by senior logistical headquarters, at the theater and corps levels, and the impact made by reserve forces toward mission accomplishment. Finally, the study looks to the future as it examines both the doctrine and the structure of the logistics community.