Overview

Desert Storm was the largest naval operation since World War II. Although naval forces did not play the central role, they fulfilled an important function throughout the operation, facing many formidable challenges and considerable risk. This book provides a close examination of the problems encountered by the Navy, both in the military situation and in dealing with the other services, and the decisions made to address these issues. While interservice rivalries sometimes intruded at higher levels, jointness at the tactical level often led to effective combined-arms operations. Despite the information revolution and improvements in technology, the Fog of War still obscured the battlefield and affected nearly all decisions. This study offers page-turning action, such as SEAL activity and combat search and rescue missions, as well as the exciting and dangerous surface operations that gained sea control of the northern Persian Gulf. Using primary sources such as interviews and many documents cleared only recently for public release, the author covers the relations between General Schwarzkopf and Vice Admirals Mauz and Arthur; the major contribution of Tomahawk cruise missiles to the first wave of attacks on Baghdad; the controversial use of aircraft carriers in the Gulf; as well as the Navy's possible role in the event of an amphibious assault into Kuwait. Those preparing to fight in future naval actions will learn much from this detailed analysis.

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9780313310249

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Reviews

?Pokrant provides a concise, detailed history of the actions of U.S. Naval Forces, Central Command during operations DESERT SHIELD and DESERT STORM....Both purposes have been achieved with significant success....Pokrant has made a superior contribution to the professional literature of the Gulf War....Desert Storm at Sea is written in an easily understandable narrative style....Desert Storm at Sea and its companion volume are very welcome additions to the literature. They provide a comprehensive, detailed Gulf War history of U.S. naval activities where none before existed.?-Naval War College Review

Author Information

MARVIN POKRANT has been a military operations research analyst for more than 20 years./e After joining the Center for Naval Analyses, he had field tours with Commander-in-Chief Pacific Fleet, Commander Third Fleet, and Commander Seventh Fleet. After Desert Storm, Dr. Pokrant coordinated CNA's reconstruction of Desert Shield and Desert Storm with the Seventh Fleet staff. Later, as Director of CNA's Fleet Tactics and Capabilities Program from 1992 to 1994, he oversaw many follow-on analyses of issues raised during Desert Storm. Dr. Pokrant is now retired.

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