The Long Haul: Historical Case Studies of Sustainment in Large-Scale Combat Operations

by Army University Press, Keith Beurskens (editor), W. Marble

The Long HaulNote that we enlarged many of the maps to a full page for ease of use on a Kindle.

Historical Case Studies of Sustainment in Large-Scale Combat Operations
The practice of logistics has been around since the earliest known
standing army of the Assyrians at around 700 BC. It was fundamentally
unchanged for more than two millennia. Logistic support consisted of
feeding, equipping, and moving (i.e. horses, camels, mules, and oxen) the
force. Non-combatant followers carried the materiel necessary to provide
sustenance and maintenance to the fighting force. Campaign timing was
synchronized to occur just after the harvest to extend the time the force
could remain in one place. Alexander the Great established warfare as a
year-round operation—not wintering or staying more than a few weeks
away from a sea port or navigable river with his army on campaign. He
made extensive use of shipping with merchant ships and horses. Alexander
also used his enemy’s logistics weaknesses against them.2
There was no truly revolutionary approach to logistics until the introduction
of steam engines and the railroad. The American Civil War foreshadowed
future warfare, particularly as regards logistics. It was the first
major war in which railways played an important part, speeding up the
movement of troops and supplies. To a great extent railroads also dictated
the axes of advance or retreat, the siting of defensive positions, and
the location of battles.3 The United States’ first two large-scale combat
operations within the industrial age were the First and Second World
Wars. These wars had both the traditional logistics requirements—only
at a much grander scale—and introduced new warfare technology-based
logistics requirements.
Post Korean War and throughout the Cold War, the United States as
a superpower and in cooperation with her allies expanded the concept of
logistical planning. The United States began to stockpile military supplies
at strategic points of the world near areas of potential conventional war
danger.4 The origins of the US modern Operational Contract Support practices
are from the US experiences during the Vietnam War.5 Advances in
logistical support to strategic maneuver and within harsh environments
occurred during operations in the Middle East during Operation Desert
Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
This book is a collection of 11 historical case studies of sustainment
operations drawn from the past 100 years with lessons for modern largescale
combat operations (LSCO). The work is organized chronologically
specifically including World War I and II, Korean War, Vietnam
War, Falklands War, Desert Storm, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. The
Commanding General Combined Arms Support Command (CASCOM)
presented future sustainment trends to end the book. It is intended as a tool
for the development of thoughtful reflection on past experience—good
and bad. It is a work of history and should be approached as such, as a tool
used to teach situational critical thinking.

Kindle Edition

Published April 1, 2024