CAMPAIGN PLANNING HANDBOOK

1 CAMPAIGN PLANNING HANDBOOK Academic Year 2017 United States Army War College Department of Military Strategy, PLANNING , and operations Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania 17013-5242 Middle States Accreditation The Army War College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104, (267) 284-5000. MSCHE is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the Secretary of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Initial accreditation was granted in 2004. i Table of Contents Page INTRODUCTION .. 1 CHAPTER 1: National Strategic Direction and Guidance Strategic Direction.

2 3 National Military Guidance .. 5 CHAPTER 2: Joint Operation PLANNING Introduction .. 11 Campaigning .. 11 Joint PLANNING and Execution Community .. 12 Adaptive PLANNING and Execution System (APEX) .. 13 Types of Joint Operation PLANNING .. 14 Joint PLANNING in a Comprehensive Context .. 16 Joint Operation Activities .. 17 Risk ..18 CHAPTER 3: Operational Design Introduction .. 21 An Operational Design Approach to 23 Link between Operational Design and PLANNING .. 27 Link between Operational Design and Execution .. 28 Conducting Operational Design .. 29 Organizing for Operational Options .. 46 CHAPTER 4: Development of Theater Strategy and CAMPAIGN Plans Introduction .. 53 Sources of Guidance and Direction for Theater Strategy .. 54 Components of Theater Strategy.

3 55 Using Operational Design for Building a Theater Strategy .. 57 The Theater CAMPAIGN Plan .. 63 Components of a Theater CAMPAIGN Plan .. 64 Supporting Plans .. 67 CHAPTER 5: Joint Operation PLANNING Process Introduction .. 69 Initiate PLANNING .. 70 Conduct Mission Analysis .. 71 Develop Courses of Action .. 83 Analyze Courses of Action .. 93 Compare Courses of Action .. 98 Approve a Course of Action .. 100 Develop the Plan .. 103 Appendix A APEX IPR Process .. A-1 Appendix B Global Force Management .. B-1 Appendix C PMESII Systems Construct .. C-1 ii Appendix D Crisis Action PLANNING and Reference Times .. D-1 Appendix E Combined / Joint Task Force Headquarters .. E-1 Appendix F Glossary .. F-1 iii List of Figures 1 National Strategic Direction and Guidance.

4 5 2 Contents of the 2015 GEF .. 8 3 Contents of the 2015 JSCP .. 9 4 The Joint PLANNING and Execution Community .. 12 5 Joint Operation PLANNING .. 14 6 Joint Risk 20 7 An Operational Design Approach to Campaigning .. 23 8 The Operational Design Activities .. 24 9 Operational Design and PLANNING .. 27 10 PMESII Systems Analysis .. 31 11 Tensions that Describe our Problem .. 36 12 Sample Line of Operation .. 40 13 Sample Lines of Effort .. 41 14 Brainstorming .. 44 15 Mind 45 16 Options or Courses of Action .. 48 17 The Joint Operation PLANNING Process .. 69 18 JOPP Step 1: Initiate PLANNING .. 70 19 JOPP Step 2: Conduct Mission Analysis .. 72 20 Sample Mission Analysis Brief Agenda .. 79 21 JOPP Step 3: Develop Courses of Action .. 84 22 Relationship between End State, Objectives, Effects, and 87 23 JOPP Step 4: Analyze Courses of Action.

5 93 24 Sample Wargaming Steps .. 96 25 JOPP Step 5: Compare Courses of Action .. 98 26 Sample COA Comparison Matrix (Weighted Numerical) .. 99 27 Sample COA Comparison Matrix (Descriptive) .. 100 28 JOPP Step 6: Course of Action Approval .. 101 29 Sample COA Decision Brief Agenda .. 102 30 Sample Commander s Estimate .. 103 31 JOPP Step 7: Develop the 104 32 A Phasing Model .. 105 A-1 The APEX Process .. A-5 B-1 Force Apportionment, Assignment, and Allocation Bins .. B-2 B-2 Force Allocation Process .. B-4 D-1 Relationship between Deliberate PLANNING and CAP .. D-3 D-2 The CAP Process .. D-4 E-2 Potential JTF HQ .. E-4 iv THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY BLANK 1 Introduction The purpose of this document is to assist United States Army War College students during the Theater Strategy and Campaigning (TSC) course.

6 It also serves to assist commanders, planners, and other staff officers in combatant commands (CCMD), joint task forces (JTF), and service component commands. It supplements joint doctrine and contains elements of emerging doctrine as practiced globally by joint force commanders (JFCs). It portrays a way to apply doctrine and emerging doctrine at the higher levels of joint command, with a primary emphasis at the combatant command level. Commanders have used CAMPAIGN PLANNING to synchronize efforts and sequence several related operations throughout history. Gen. George Washington planned the CAMPAIGN of 1781 to coordinate the actions of a French fleet, a French expeditionary army, and his "main army" to destroy the British forces at Yorktown. Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant planned simultaneous offensives by his subordinate commands against the Confederacy for the 1864 CAMPAIGN .

7 During World War II, CAMPAIGN PLANNING became essential to coordinate the actions of joint and combined forces in all Allied theaters. As a mature example of CAMPAIGN PLANNING in the Pacific Theater of War, General of the Army Douglas MacArthur issued his Strategic Plan for operations in the Japanese Archipelago, DOWNFALL, in May 1945. In this 25-page document, MacArthur explained how the plan "..visualizes attainment of the assigned objectives by two (2) successive operations (OLYMPIC and CORONET)." The cover letter described this plan as a "general guide covering the larger phases of allocation of means and of coordination, both operational and logistic. It is not designed to restrict executing agencies in detailed development of their final plans of operation." CAMPAIGN PLANNING received new emphasis during Operation DESERT STORM in 1991, when Gen.

8 Norman Schwarzkopf used a CAMPAIGN plan to guide the synchronized employment of his forces in Iraq. In the wake of operations ENDURING FREEDOM and IRAQI FREEDOM, theater strategy and CAMPAIGN PLANNING have become high priorities within the Department of Defense, and several other executive departments have given both a higher priority. Theater and subordinate joint commanders now develop a comprehensive set of nested strategies and plans, beginning with a theater or global strategy, followed by a theater or functional CAMPAIGN plan, and supported by theater security cooperation, contingency , and posture plans. All of these are nested within the context of ongoing operations . This HANDBOOK focuses at the combatant command and subordinate joint force command levels. In some cases, where there is an apparent dichotomy between joint and Service doctrine, the HANDBOOK reconciles the differences where possible and focuses on "best practices" for theater commanders 2 THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY BLANK 3 CHAPTER 1: National Strategic Direction and Guidance 1.

9 Strategic Direction. Strategic direction is the common thread that integrates and synchronizes the activities of the Joint Staff, combatant commands, Services, and combat support agencies. As an overarching term, strategic direction encompasses the processes and products by which the President, the Secretary of Defense (SecDef), and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) provide strategic guidance. The function of national strategic guidance is to provide long-term and intermediate objectives by defining the ends and means, with interagency partners, including joint force commanders, responsible to provide the ways. From a military perspective this guidance should include a description of what constitutes success (ends) and the allocation of resources and forces (means). a. Strategic guidance from civilian and military policymakers is a prerequisite to develop a military CAMPAIGN plan.

10 The President provides strategic guidance through the National Security Strategy (NSS), Presidential Directives [the current administration uses the term Presidential Policy Directives (PPDs)], and other strategic documents, in conjunction with additional guidance from other members of the National Security Council (NSC). The National Security Council is the principal forum for coordinating executive departments and agencies to develop and implement national security policy. The NSC advises the President in integrating all aspects of national security policy as it affects the United States domestic, foreign, military, intelligence, and economic (in conjunction with the National Economic Council). The NSC develops policy options, considers implications, coordinates operational problems that require interdepartmental consideration, develops recommendations for the President, and monitors policy implementation.