Service Ownership of the Patriot Missile System

Today the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines intensely compete over technology and a never sufficient defense budget to defend or expand their respective service’s roles, missions, and functions. However, independent air, land, and sea operations no longer exist, and joint doctrine dominates the conduct of warfare. The Joint Forces Commander establishes air superiority through integrated offensive and defensive counterair missions to ensure freedom from attack and freedom to attack. Defensive counterair, synonymous with air defense, is designed to destroy or negate enemy aircraft and missiles after launch and is not the primary responsibility of one service but of all four services. Centering on non-littoral joint areas of operation, should the Army’s Patriot forces become a part of the Air Force to effectively and efficiently accomplish the defensive counterair mission for the joint forces commander? Focusing on functionality instead of cost the author evaluated Patriot against the Army and the Air Force using the air defense employment principles of mobility, mix, mass, and integration. Until US adversaries can mount a robust simultaneous air and missile attack or the Air Force acquires positioning authority, the Army is the best service to exploit Patriot for the joint forces commander.

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