Revolutionizing Warfare Through Interdiction

Abstract : The Joint surveillance and target attack radar system (JSTARS) promises to revolutionize how US forces conduct conventional warfare. Before the development of JSTARS, US forces depended on close operations to defeat an enemy army. Because airpower's ability to destroy an enemy's mobile ground forces was severely limited, especially during darkness and bad weather, interdiction proved important to close operations-but in a supporting role-primarily by delaying and disrupting enemy maneuver and resupply. Now, however, JSTARS and developments in precision guided munitions (PGM) will permit a commander to use interdiction to quickly destroy large numbers of an enemy army's vehicles, even during darkness and bad weather. Interdiction's vastly increased destructiveness against mobile forces will revolutionize the conduct of warfare by giving airpower a much more direct role in the defeat of an enemy army. Although close operations will still be necessary, friendly ground forces will most likely sustain significantly fewer casualties. Examining the role of interdiction in past wars will help explain why JSTARS is the key to revolutionizing warfare through interdiction.