BASE DEFENSE AT THE FORWARD OPERATING BASE

1 base DEFENSE AT THE SPECIAL FORCES FORWARD OPERATIONAL base A thesis presented to the Faculty of the Army Command and General Staff College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree MASTER OF MILITARY ART AND SCIENCE General Studies by CURTIS W. HUBBARD, MAJ, USA , University of Miami, Miami, Florida, 1990 Fort Leavenworth, Kansas 2002 Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. iiABSTRACT base DEFENSE AT THE SPECIAL FORCES FORWARD OPERATIONAL base by MAJ Curtis W. Hubbard, USA, 122 pages. Special Forces FORWARD operational bases (FOB) are essential for mission and contingency planning as well as for the preparation, infiltration and exfiltration of Operational Detachment Alphas (ODA).

2 Therefore, the DEFENSE of this command and control headquarters is critical for preserving combat power and synchronizing military actions in a theater of operations. Because the enemy has the capability of projecting forces with the objective of disrupting US military operations, FOBs have become likely targets. According to SF doctrine, FOBs should be located in secure areas with MP or host-nation personnel providing the bulk of the security force . Although this situation is preferable, it is by no means assured. FOBs should be able to provide their own security in the event other forces are not available or when rapid deployment restricts the flow of conventional forces into a theater of operations.

3 After-action review results from the Joint Readiness Training Center demonstrate that many SF battalions are not prepared to execute base DEFENSE tasks without the assistance of other forces. Many SF commanders do not consider base DEFENSE a mission essential task and the result is a lack of training by many of their personnel. This study analyzes joint and SF doctrine, observations from the field, and the effects of the contemporary OPERATING environment to identify weaknesses in the readiness of SF battalions. This project attempts to answer three major questions that are the basis for the research. 1) With the emergence of an asymmetrical threat in the contemporary OPERATING environment, does current doctrine adequately and realistically address base DEFENSE measures at the FOB?

4 2) Can SF commanders assume that attachments from other units will be available to defend FOBs? 3) Has the nature of the threat changed significantly enough to alter current thinking? This study leads to the conclusions that SF should make base DEFENSE a priority, modify its doctrine, implement new training strategies, and procure base DEFENSE equipment. iiiACKNOWLEDGMENTS First, I must thank my wife Michelle, my brother Glenn, and my mother Glenda for their love and support--you are the best. During every phase of my life I have been blessed with amazing friends, both in the US and abroad. There are too many to list here, but suffice to say that all of those from my hometown in Boone, NC, college in Miami, FL, and those I have met in the army and on visits overseas, have made life rewarding and worthwhile; for that I am eternally grateful.

5 I would like to thank my committee, LTC (Ret) Occhiuzzo, LTC (Ret) Babb, and Dr. Willbanks (LTC, Ret) for their guidance and professionalism during the course of this project. Thanks also to Carolyn, Sylvia, Glenn, Glenda, Michelle, and Helen Davis for support and proofreading help while attempting to understand SF operations and our associated acronyms. Thank you to my previous battalion commanders, LTC Zeigler and COL Ruggley, for providing guidance and support without micro management during my commands. To the men of 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne)--you are the unsung heroes of SF. And to my Dad who is my true North seeking arrow. ivTABLE OF CONTENTS Page APPROVAL PAGE .. ii ABSTRACT.

6 Iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .. iv ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS .. vi LIST OF TABLES .. ix CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION .. 1 2. LITERATURE REVIEW .. 13 3. base DEFENSE DOCTRINE .. 24 4. OBSERVATIONS FROM THE 40 5. THE CONTEMPORARY OPERATING 56 6. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS .. 73 APPENDIX A. base DEFENSE TACTICS, TECNHIQUES AND PROCEDURES.. 83 B. VIETNAM base DEFENSE LESSONS LEARNED .. 94 C. base DEFENSE COMMAND AND CONTROL OPTIONS .. 102 D. JOINT base DEFENSE OPERATION ORDER 109 REFERENCE LIST .. 118 INITIAL DISTRIBUTION LIST .. 123 CERTIFICATION FOR MMAS DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT .. 125 vLIST OF TABLE Table Page 1. Threat Levels and Response Mechanisms.

7 33 viACRONYMS AAR after-action review AO area of operations AOB advanced operational base AOR area of responsibility ARSOF Army Special Operations Forces ARTEP Army Training and Evaluation Program BDOC base DEFENSE operations center BCOC base cluster operations center C2 command and control CA civil affairs CHECO Contemporary Historical Examination of Current Operations CI counterintelligence CINC commander in chief COG center of gravity DOD Department of DEFENSE FM field manual FOB FORWARD operational base FSOP field standing OPERATING procedure FTX

8 Field training exercise HHC headquarters and headquarters company HSC headquarters and support company viiISOFAC isolation facility JFC joint forces command JRAC joint rear area coordinator JRTC Joint Readiness Training Center JSOA joint Special Operations area JSOTF joint Special Operations task force JTF joint task force QRF quick reaction force MASCAL mass-casualty MEDEVAC medical evacuation METL mission-essential task list MI military intelligence MID military intelligence detachment MOOTW military operations other than war MP military police MTOE modified table of

9 Organization and equipment MTW major theater of war NCO noncommissioned officer OC observer-controller ODA operational detachment alpha OPCEN operations center OPFOR opposing forces PME peacetime military engagement viii PZ pick-up zone RAOC rear area operations center ROE rules of engagement RTOC rear tactical operations center SF Special Forces SFG(A) Special Forces group (airborne)

10 SFOB Special Forces operational base SIGCEN signal center SJA staff judge advocate SO Special Operations SOF special operations forces SOG sergeant of the guard SOP standing OPERATING procedure SOSCOM Special Operations Support Command SPTCEN support center SSC smaller-scale contingency TAP The Army Plan TCF tactical combat force THP take home packet THREATCON threat condition TTP tactics, techniques.