Published: 1997
Total Pages: 50
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The Defense Science Board (DSB) Task Force on Tactics and Technology for 21st Century Military Superiority was formed by the Office of the Secretary of Defense to explore new concepts for making a relatively small and rapidly deployable force capable for accomplishing missions that would otherwise require a large, massed force. As part of the concept development phase of the study, the DSB identified two different means of achieving a capable small dispersed force. The first concept represents an evolutionary change from current small forces, such as the division ready brigade (DRB) of the 82nd Airborne. Here the force is envisioned to remain a small, mostly self-contained unit such as a DRB, but it is given the mission and capability of a larger unit such as a division. This may be accomplished by augmenting many of a DRB's current components with advanced RSTA, C2, and weapon systems, much as envisioned in the Rapid Force Projection Initiative (RFPI) and the U.S. Army's Force XXI concept. The DSB builds on these concepts by emphasizing joint nonorganic or 'external' RSTA and fire support system technologies. The second DSB concept is more revolutionary, removing the notion of an area control by ground forces almost entirely. Here, long-range fires are called by small, virtually independent dismounted teams moving around the region. This concept is close to that espoused in the USMC Sea Dragon proposal. The DSB concept builds on Sea Dragon by extending it to include a larger range of external RSTA and weapons and possibly giving it a more substantial level of team mobility. While our simulation effort focuses on the first concept, the two have many aspects in common, and some merging of ideas is expected. Both concepts emphasize joint operations and coordination among many geographically remote systems. The common question between both concepts is how much of a.