Command And Control And Integration Of Joint Functions Associated With The Invasion Of Sicily

Mission Command: The unity of command principle favored Colonial forces and their allies. General Washington refined his command climate through years of troubled multinational operations. He painfully understood the importance of synergy towards an end state. General Washington’s clear communication of intent and subordinate leader empowerment contrasted his adversaries. General Clinton’s combative command climate with Lord Cornwallis exacerbated their demise. Clear intent allowed the Colonial coalition to seize a fleeting opportunity at Yorktown.

Operational leaders down to the platoon and squad level have recently faced increasingly complex missions in uncertain operational environments. Accordingly, Army doctrine has shifted to officially recognize mission command, which enables leaders at the lowest level feasible to “exercise disciplined initiative” in the accomplishment of a larger mission. The operational process consists of six tenants: understand, visualize, describe, direct, lead, and assess. During the battle of Fallujah, LtGen Natonski understood the intent two levels up, visualizing courses of action for both allies and the enemy, and leading his organization into combat while directing his officers and soldiers to meet his intent. He visualized that Marines alone could not accomplish the mission. He understood that without the support of Iraqi police and a task force from the Army with

Army Doctrine Publication (ADP) 6-0 defines mission command as “the exercise of authority and direction by the commander using mission orders to enable disciplined initiative within the commander’s intent to empower agile and adaptive leaders in the conduct of unified land operations” (U.S Army, Training and Doctrine Command, Combined Arms Center, Center for the Army Profession and Ethic, 2015, p. 1). The six principles of mission command direct leaders to build cohesive teams through mutual trust, create shared understanding, provide a clear commander’s intent, exercise disciplined initiative, use mission orders, and accept prudent risk. These principles enable subordinates that understand their commander’s intent to accomplish missions by adapting to the situation and taking advantage of opportunities as they arise (U.S Army, Training and Doctrine Command, Combined Arms Center, Center for the Army Profession and Ethic, 2015, p. 2). Various battles throughout history provide examples of the application of the principles of mission command as well as the failure to adhere to them. The Battle of the Little Bighorn is an example of the latter and marks the “most decisive Native American victory and the worse U.S. defeat during the long Plains Indian War” (History.com Staff, 2009).

Successful leadership on a battlefield can be measured in different ways. It is possible for a good, successful leader to lose a battle. Conversely, it is possible for an ineffective leader to win a battle, given the right circumstances. What distinguishes a successful leader from an unsuccessful one is his/her ability to oversee an operation using effective mission command. In ADP 6-0, mission command as a philosophy is defined as “as the exercise of authority and direction by the commander using mission orders to enable disciplined initiative within the commander’s intent to empower agile and adaptive leaders in the conduct of unified land operations” (ADP, 1).

Maj. Gen. “Fighting Joe” Hooker demonstrated an excellent example of failed mission command during the Battle of Chancellorsville in April 1863. He had thought he would defeat General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia by maneuver beginning in Chancellorsville as he pushed Lee toward Richmond. His commitment toward his own plan for Lee’s response would overshadow his operational planning and ultimately lead to a mission command failure at Chancellorsville despite outnumbering Lee’s troops 128,000 to 60,000. Through decentralized execution, Hooker could have empowered agile and adaptive leadership to operate under uncertainty, exploit opportunities, and achieve unity of effort. Instead, he failed in exercising at least four principles of mission command. He did not provide a clear commander’s intent, create shared understanding, exercise disciplined initiative, or accept prudent risk.

Operational leaders see how the individual components of an organization fit together and use those individuals work to make a larger outcome. When they focus on a problem, they think of what works best within the process and systems to make an impact on the situation. These types of leaders play a big part in making sure that things get done in an effective and functioning manner. According to the Army Doctrine ADP 6-0, the Army over time has strayed away from operational leaders and adapted Mission Command, which gives leaders the ability at the lowest level the capability to exercise disciplined initiative in an act of carrying out the larger mission . Mission Command is made up of the following six steps: Understanding, Visualize,

Commanders at all levels face increasingly challenging scenarios as the operational environment changes. Some instinctively motivate and empower their subordinates to think and act independently, thereby influencing actions during combat. However, those who understand the commanders' activities of mission command will influence not only subordinates, but the outcome of the battle as well. Mission command is the exercise of authority and direction by the commander using mission orders to enable disciplined initiative within the commander’s intent to empower agile and adaptive leaders.1 Commanders who understood the importance of mission command was Major General Horatio Gates. General Gates at the Battle of Saratoga successfully

One could imagine living in a world without television, the internet, whiffle ball, bubble wrap, or snowboarding. None of these twenty-first century items that are taken for granted today were around in 1944. Everything about normal life was changing in 1944 due to events happening across the world. Although most fighting from World War II was contained to Europe, its effects were certainly felt at home in the United States. Food and other necessities were rationed. Men were being drafted into the war. Families were being split apart. The Allied Forces fighting the war were losing strength, so in an attempt to regain strength and bring the war to an end, the Allied Forces launched the largest sea invasion ever. Nicknamed Operation Overlord,

General Eisenhower was a trustworthy leader who failed to establish an effective command climate in the Mediterranean Campaign. As the Commander of Allied Forces Headquarters Command (AFHC), Eisenhower initiated an ineffectual command climate through poor administration of personal focused behaviors with his command staff. In lieu of an effective command climate, Allied strategic successes are attributed to the collective professionalism and determination of the Allied staff.

These deficiencies led his senior subordinates to develop their own diverging commander’s intent. Admiral Andrew Cunningham, Air Chief Marshall Arthur Tedder and General Harold Alexander, all British and Eisenhower senior lieutenants, constructed additional Commander’s intent and personalized operational understanding of Husky that facilitated their own additional operational end states, beyond the capture of Sicily. Admiral Cunningham wanted to ensure the safety of his fleet and refused to operate in the contested waters near Italy. Air Chief Marshall Tedder, above all

Mission orders may be understood by the leader’s subordinates, however poor training and development amongst other practices may hinder the execution of the commander’s intent. Everything starts with training. Rehearsals are key in knowing what to do and how to react when the time comes. The team may know what to do through the orders, however they will not know how to perform tasks if

The Normandy Landings were a series of landing operations by Allied forces to capture Normandy during World War 2. The Normandy Landings were also known to the Allied forces as Operation Neptune, or D-Day. Meanwhile, the operation to gain control of France was named Operation Overlord. The purpose of Operation Overlord was to seize Western Europe starting with France from Nazi control and enter Germany together with the Soviet forces from Eastern Europe to end the Nazi regime. During this conflict, 156,000 Allied troops fought against a outnumbered 50,350 Nazi force. In the end, the Allies had approx. 10,000 causalities as opposed to the Nazi’s 4000-9000 casualties.

Principles of Mission Command in Operation Anaconda SSG Jaboris Pittman SLC 25W 502-18 Abstract I will discuss my analytical view on the events that took place in 2002, titled “Operation Anaconda”. Richard Kulger wrote the case study that gives in depth insight on these events. Several units participated in this mission from Special Operations (SOF), 10th Mountain, U.S. Army Rangers, and also units from Afghanistan Army.

Without the ability of the subordinate commanders to understand the situation, take appropriate action and coordinate joint functions, especially naval fires and movement and maneuver, Operation Husky could have been a far more painful experience for the Allied

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate what I learned about mission command and reflect on how I will use the philosophy and concepts of mission command in my future duty assignment following graduation from the Sergeants Major Course. Although mission command is commander centric, noncommissioned officers (NCO’s) play a dynamic role in facilitating it.