Strategic Mobility and the Transforming Army

The purpose of this monograph is to answer the research question: Will the current and programmed Department of Defense Transportation System (DTS) support the strategic responsiveness requirements of the US Army during the initial phase of transformation. The answer to this question is significant because the US Army is undergoing a transformation to become more strategically responsive. A measure of Army responsiveness is dependent on its ability to rapidly deploy. The Army will only deploy as quickly as the DTS is capable of moving it units and equipment. In order to answer the question, classified and unclassified sources are used to develop the transportation requirements of the Army through FY 07. These requirements take into account the goal stated in the Army Vision of deploying a brigade in 96 hours, a division in 120 hours, and a five division corps in 30 days. Classified and unclassified sources are used to develop projected capabilities of the DTS in the FY 07 period. Emphasis is placed on determining the capability of the components of the strategic mobility triad. These components are strategic airlift, strategic sealift, and prepositioned equipment. To make this capability determination, the outcomes of three DoD mobility requirements studies are explored. The findings of these studies reveal issues and trends associated with strategic mobility, which have and will continue to affect the capability of the DTS to support Army mobility requirements. The method described above reveals that the DTS of FY 07 will not support attainment of the goal stated in the Army Vision. The greatest shortfall in capability is associated with strategic airlift. Strategic sealift and prepositioned equipment are shown to have some capacity to move the Army closer to its responsiveness goals. The findings and recommendations for improving the projected situation include: studying the supportable, deployment timeline for the IBCTs and to ensure that the units capabilities