AERIAL INFILTRATION: ANALYSIS OF SOF ROTARY-WING IN FUTURE CONTESTED ENVIRONMENTS

United States Special Operations Forces (USSOF) have relied heavily on and benefited from, air supremacy, operating at the high end of the air control spectrum during decades of irregular warfare. The premise that U.S. forces will be able to depend upon air superiority in the future may be mistaken. A changing global security environment that includes near-peer competitors, sophisticated rogue states, and widely available technological advancements will reduce U.S. military freedom of maneuver and threaten SOF employment of rotary-wing (RW) infiltration. Improvements in air defense systems, coupled with global trends, will alter future operational landscapes. The complexity of tomorrow’s threats affects the development of future vertical lift (FVL) and raises a simple question: How will the U.S. conduct SOF aerial infiltration in a contested environment? Through case study analysis, this research categorically validates previous airpower tenets while deriving a theory for SOF RW infiltration and applying it to a mathematical model. Utilizing fundamental aviation principles (training standards, deployability, maneuverability, survivability, and connectedness) as predictor variables, the model addresses varying air threat levels and evaluates the likelihood of a successful infiltration event. Ultimately, this study informs decision-makers and planners interested in SOF RW utilization while providing insight into future SOF RW capability for military and industry leaders.http://archive.org/details/aerialinfiltrati1094564093Outstanding ThesisMajor, United States ArmyMajor, United States ArmyApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited