Land Warfare

The future conflicts that our nation may have to fight are more likely to be tactical than strategic. Land warfare forces, including the related elements of Tacair, play a pivotal role in our tactical combat capabilities, as evidenced by the fact that in World War II German production of virtually all critical material was still continuing to increase until Germany was on the verge of being physically overrun. Yet, our land warfare forces have been comparatively slow to embrace new technological developments, with such equipment as the tank, the rifle, and the cannon still playing major roles. Unfortunately, those instances wherein new technology has been adopted do not present a uniformly satisfying picture. One factor potentially contributing to this has been the inherent compartmentalization and fragmentation of our land warfare RDT&E efforts, with an overview of the interrelationships between aircraft and armor, rifles and rockets, and helicopters and howitzers seldom having been attempted.