Overview
 Understand the causes, outcome and impact of Operation Desert
Storm
 Understand how military aviation and national defense strategy
fundamental changed as the result of Operation Desert Storm
Classroom Exercise
What Everyone Didn’t Know
 The success of Operation Desert Storm’s air campaign was a culmination of
a shift in airpower strategy enabled not only by precision weapons, but the
very nature in which airpower was organized, planned and even led.
 Development of the Joint Force Air Component Commander
 Development of the Air Tasking Order
Air Tasking Order (ATO)
 The JFACC's overall strategy for the air campaign was set forth in the
Master Attack Plan (MAP) – the daily strategy or “schedule” was the ATO
 Weapon system experts from across the JFACC staff worked together with
coalition partners, intelligence, logistics, and weather experts to outline
every part of an aircraft’s flight – from take-off to landing.
Air Tasking Order (ATO)
Simultaneously
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4…
Boyd’s OODA Loop on Steroids?
Type of Aircraft, Take-off and Land Time
Call Sign: Oderon
Target Location, Time Over Target, Weapons Used
Air Refueling Plan and Support Plan
War Tonnage /Length / Tonnage Per Month
WW II: 2,150,000 / 45 months / 47,777.78
Korea: 454,000 / 37 months / 12,270.27
Vietnam: 6,162,000 / 140 months / 44,014.29
Gulf War: 60,624 / 1.5 months / 40,416.00
Impact of the Air Campaign
 Operation Desert Storm’
Commanders identified the Iraqi
Republican Guard as a vital
target.
 Not every Republican Guard
division was hit equally hard;
those in the path of the planned
Coalition ground forces received
the brunt of the attacks.
 The CENTCOM Commander
directed that comparatively
greater damage be inflicted on
the front-line forces to reduce
Coalition ground forces'
casualties.
Lessons Learned
 High Tech Precision Weapons enabled a revolution in military strategy,
but changes in command, strategy, organization and joint/coalition
cooperation is what made the revolution work
 When airpower works it can have a very powerful effect, sometimes not
always what was anticipated
 Airpower took its place as a dominate part of warfare, but it must be
part of a overall comprehensive strategy to truly be effective
Keep the last
lesson in mind as
we look at Bosnia
and Kosovo later