Military Review English Edition May-June 2016 | Page 87

ARMY AIRCRAFT

designed specifically for CAS, rationally sacrificing other characteristics
such as air-to-air survivability. One
factor that grows out of such conditions is that, while technology is
important, effective CAS is less about
the “box,” meaning the aircraft and its
technology, than it is about the “man
in the box.”30
Additionally, the characteristics
of the aircraft are important. These
characteristics, from a ground commander perspective, are consistent
throughout history, from World
War II and Vietnam to Iraq and
Afghanistan. The desired characteristics for an aircraft supporting ground
troops with CAS are endurance,
responsiveness, precision, situational
awareness, survivability, and effective
air-to-ground communications.

Army CAS Provides
Sustained Continuity
During Contact
Since air superiority is an undisputed prerequisite for operations
and the USAF prefers interdiction
(Image courtesy of U.S. Marine Corps)
to CAS, it follows that the number
A Marine air-observer team guides a Marine Corps Corsair aircraft in for a strike on an
of available USAF CAS sorties will
enemy-held hill during the Korean War (circa 1950). The “black Corsairs” were highly
decrease as the USAF fleet gets small- praised by soldiers and marines alike for their precision strikes on targets and their
er. This may well lead to a situation
extremely close support of forward units.
where MRAs are overtaxed, switching back and forth between very different types of
the friendly or the enemy positions from 12,000 feet
missions, preventing them from focusing on specific
above; and the air-ground team did not understand
missions as well as the close relationship CAS rethe capabilities and limitations of the targeting and
quires. This may lead to an increased fratricide risk to signaling equipment. Because the aircrew believed
ground forces during CAS missions, as exemplified by they could identify friendly strobe lights, the aira recent incident in Afghanistan.
ground team “collectively failed to effectively execute
On 9 June 2014, a USAF B-1B bomber dropped
the fundamentals, which resulted in poor situation
two 500 lb. GPS-guided bombs on an Army Special
awareness and improper target identification.”32 Sadly,
Forces team working with Afghan security forces,
when it comes to CAS, this type of tragic incident is
31
killing five. Numerous errors by the aircrew and
too common.
ground element contributed to deaths on the ground,
all of which are historically endemic to CAS: The
Recommendations
controller was unfamiliar with the operating environThe Army requires an aircraft under its direct
ment; the aircrew could not visually acquire either
control designed for CAS. As an X Corps report
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