Airpower Debate Question: Given That Case Study

Total Length: 870 words ( 3 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: 3

Page 1 of 3

CFACC and AOC are, by their very nature, located several hundred, sometimes thousands of miles from the air battle. And, as emphasized prior, we understand that technology allows command far more specific details than in the history of the military. That being said, no amount of technology can translate a blip on a screen to an actual threat, and react with the appropriate response within milliseconds. One would think, for instance, that with the thousands upon thousands of dollars the service spends on training their pilots, the number of scenarios engendered, and the amount of air time required to pilot a multimillion dollar piece of extraordinary equipment that command would acknowledge that there needs to be a certain level of trust and allowance for experience and pilot assessment of various high stress situations. While it is certainly true that, at times, the individual pilot cannot see the "big picture," and needs advice from central, individual decisions made in combat situations are clearly field based.

Closing Remarks - While cycles are in place at the ATO level and others, to establish efficient employment of available resources controlled by central operations, there are several strategic and tactical reasons to establish a protocol that would allow for more robust field control in highly volatile combat situations:

Decision making can be instantaneous, based on visual and technological acumen, as well as local intelligence and experience in the combat area.

Pilots are highly trained and regarded for their ability to make decision that not only affect the lives of others, but expensive equipment; why hobble a highly trained officer with experience?

Technological advances are an invaluable aid, and certainly have made it easier and more productive for intelligence and operational decisions.

Stuck Writing Your "Airpower Debate Question: Given That" Case Study?

However, what isn't on the screen is often as important as what is on the screen -- and the best judge of that is the local pilot.

In a combat situation, the pilot has fewer multiple horizontal priorities than central, regardless of the talent of the personnel at command. The focus is there, the expertise is there -- training kicks in, experience modifies, and field-based decisions are more complete.

One must ask what the function of a fighter pilot is in the modern military machine. If we want to control drone planes from a central location, we should send drone planes -- so there must be a strategic reason why we use human pilots? It may be inefficient to negate that use by overemphasizing command/central control.

Ultimately, we are in a philosophical diatribe; do we use utilitarianism or deontology to make command-based.....

Show More ⇣


     Open the full completed essay and source list


OR

     Order a one-of-a-kind custom essay on this topic


sample essay writing service

Cite This Resource:

Latest APA Format (6th edition)

Copy Reference
"Airpower Debate Question Given That" (2010, March 29) Retrieved May 21, 2025, from
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/airpower-debate-question-given-1127

Latest MLA Format (8th edition)

Copy Reference
"Airpower Debate Question Given That" 29 March 2010. Web.21 May. 2025. <
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/airpower-debate-question-given-1127>

Latest Chicago Format (16th edition)

Copy Reference
"Airpower Debate Question Given That", 29 March 2010, Accessed.21 May. 2025,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/airpower-debate-question-given-1127