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Lieutenant Commander Benjamin "BJ" Armstrong, a dear SWJ friend, is a Naval Aviator who has served as an Amphibious Search and Rescue and Special Warfare Pilot and an Advanced Helicopter Flight Instructor. He holds a MA in Military History from Norwich University and has written on air power and naval history. His articles and reviews have appeared in numerous journals including The Journal of Military History, Strategic Insights, Small Wars Journal and Air and Space Power Journal's Chronicles Online.
Here is an excerpt:
Over the past century, the strategic implications of aviation have played an important role in themodernization ofmilitary strategy.Development of strategic air planning hasaccelerated with the constant improvement in technology and weapon systems. However, the majority of that development has been in search of the best way to fight the next big war, a conflict between nation-states, each having a certain level of technological capability. As Western militaries continue to search for old and new ways of countering insurgent forces and conducting small war operations, all aspects of the armed forces are being addressed. There has been a great deal of debate in military aviation over the proper role that air power can play in small wars and counter-terrorist operations.These debates have generally centered on the role of high technology, fixedwing aircraft in an attempt to use the bombers and fighters designed to fight the "big war" to help win "small wars".
This focus loses sight of an aircraft type that has served as a central player in the conduct of small wars and counter-insurgency since nearly its first flight -- the helicopter. Using modern technology and adaptive tactics, the helicopter provides a platform able to conduct strategic strike missions on the smaller scale that is required in small wars.After the success of the GulfWar air campaign, the principles of "effectsbased targeting" began to be applied beyond the realm of high-performance bomber and ground attack aircraft. Leadership targeting developed as an outgrowth of these ideas. Such missions required several key elements to be successful. These include: proper intelligence, proper strategic planning and the use of the proper weapon system. The helicopter can fulfill two of the three pillars required for successful engagement of strategic targets from the air by providing organic, real-time intelligence and targeting information and a precision strike capability. All this is achieved with a smaller infrastructure footprint than strategic bombers and reduced chances of collateral damage...