Throughout the course, students are challenged to think critically about the operational level of war, reviewing historical operations to extract and explain enduring principles of war and aerospace power. Instructional methods include lectures, discussions, and student-led historical case studies. Lectures introduce broad concepts and provide historical continuity for seminar discussions. Case studies offer an opportunity to evaluate theory and doctrine in an historical context. OF 5500, Operational Forces 4 Semester Hours Operational Forces provides students an operational level view of the US military and builds a foundation for understanding the military instrument of power.
Students analyze the concepts essential for campaign planning.
Building on an overview of the link between military strategy, service core competencies and capabilities, and service doctrine, students prepare for joint campaign planning with special emphasis on force application and military operations other than war. Throughout this course students are required to think at the operational level of war and evaluate operational military capabilities. Students study aerospace operations planning and execution in the joint and multinational campaign processes designed to achieve theater-specific military objectives. Laying the foundation for future aerospace leaders to exploit these media with synergistic decisive effects, the course explores such contemporary issues as how applying evolving and maturing technology can ensure the success of future joint aerospace operations. 4 Semester Hours Joint Operations challenges students to develop the critical thinking and practical skills they will need as future planners and leaders of joint and multinational forces.