Military Operational Art

Introduction

The Magnitude of the Falklands/Malvinas conflict in 1982 between Britain and Argentina dictated that both employ a handful of military operational arts particularly logistics, command and control. In the heart, of the 1982 conflict in the contentious issue of the Falklands/Malvinas islands ownership, Command and control, and logistical functions featured prominently among the operations and preparations of both warring parties. According to Hime (2010, 4), “Ownership of the Falklands/Malvinas Islands since their initial discovery has always been determined by force, with British control last established in 1833 following the expulsion of the Argentine gunboat Sarandi, and its contingent of soldiers, convicts from the penal colony at San Carlos, and Argentine settlers”. The bone of contention arose from Argentina’s quest to reclaim the Falkland Islands. Consequently, this potential invasion threat called for the British Marines to be prepared to counter any military, bureaucratic, or logistical threat posed by the Argentines.

According to Thomson (1991, 2), Britain learned of the invasion threat on the actual year of the conflict, April 1982. In light of all these occurrences, both countries relied on the command and control, and logistical, military operational functions prominently. The essay focuses on how both countries used the two functions in the planning, synchronization, and conduct of the operation. In the command, and control function the paper expounds on the factors that influenced and determined command and control compositions in both Britain and Argentina. From the logistical aspect, the treatise seeks to expound on the issues that both Argentina and Britain faced, the logistical issues, and the cons...

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...e incorporation of up to 65 ships and 15,000 troops was a fruitful logistical move for the British in the second operation. Similarly, the illustrations demonstrate how organized command structures combine to achieve mission objectives. Argentina’s initial conquest was perpetuated by and organized combatant command. In the second invasion, the hierarchy of command from the prime minister to the deputies in the British Army led to the reversal of the initial outcome of the invasion.

References

Gatchel, L, T. (2001). Operational Art and Task Force Operations during the Falklands/Malvinas Conflict. The United States Naval War College.

Hime, D, N. (2010). The 1982 Falklands-Malvinas Case Study. The United States Naval War College.

Thomson, J. (1991). The Lifeblood of War: Logistics in Armed Conflicts. The United States Naval War College. 249-288; 371-374.