AERIAL INFILTRATION: ANALYSIS OF SOF ROTARY-WING IN FUTURE CONTESTED ENVIRONMENTS
Loading...
Authors
Wax, Steven J.
Hall, Joseph
Subjects
aerial infiltration
helicopter
air defense
contested environment
megacity
air superiority
airpower
SOAR
SOF
Special Operations Forces
rotary-wing
fixed-wing
160th
Blackhawk
relative air superiority
training standards
deployability
maneuverability
survivability
connectedness
synergy
lethality
logistics regression modeling
multi-domain battlespaces
MDB
proximal dominance
future vertical lift
Son Tay
Osama Bin Laden
Entebbe
O'Grady
Gulf War
A2/AD
IADS
helicopter
air defense
contested environment
megacity
air superiority
airpower
SOAR
SOF
Special Operations Forces
rotary-wing
fixed-wing
160th
Blackhawk
relative air superiority
training standards
deployability
maneuverability
survivability
connectedness
synergy
lethality
logistics regression modeling
multi-domain battlespaces
MDB
proximal dominance
future vertical lift
Son Tay
Osama Bin Laden
Entebbe
O'Grady
Gulf War
A2/AD
IADS
Advisors
Porter, Wayne
Burks, Robert E.
Date of Issue
2019-12
Date
Dec-19
Publisher
Monterey, CA; Naval Postgraduate School
Language
Abstract
United States Special Operations Forces (USSOF) have relied heavily on and benefited from, air supremacy, operating at the high end of the air control spectrum during decades of irregular warfare. The premise that U.S. forces will be able to depend upon air superiority in the future may be mistaken. A changing global security environment that includes near-peer competitors, sophisticated rogue states, and widely available technological advancements will reduce U.S. military freedom of maneuver and threaten SOF employment of rotary-wing (RW) infiltration. Improvements in air defense systems, coupled with global trends, will alter future operational landscapes. The complexity of tomorrow’s threats affects the development of future vertical lift (FVL) and raises a simple question: How will the U.S. conduct SOF aerial infiltration in a contested environment? Through case study analysis, this research categorically validates previous airpower tenets while deriving a theory for SOF RW infiltration and applying it to a mathematical model. Utilizing fundamental aviation principles (training standards, deployability, maneuverability, survivability, and connectedness) as predictor variables, the model addresses varying air threat levels and evaluates the likelihood of a successful infiltration event. Ultimately, this study informs decision-makers and planners interested in SOF RW utilization while providing insight into future SOF RW capability for military and industry leaders.
Type
Thesis
Description
Series/Report No
Department
Defense Analysis (DA)
Defense Analysis (DA)
Organization
Identifiers
NPS Report Number
Sponsors
Funding
Format
Citation
Distribution Statement
Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.