<div class="description">
<dl><dd>"December 1999"</dd>
<dd>Thesis advisor(s): Gordon H. McCormick, Anna Simons</dd>
<dd>Thesis (M.S. in Defense Analysis) Naval Postgraduate School, December 1999</dd>
<dd>Includes bibliographical references (p. 89-91)</dd>
<dd>As the military forces of the United States continue to draw down, Special Operations Forces (SOF) are playing a greater role across the entire spectrum of conflict. In order to maintain its relative advantage, SOF is using technology as a means to leverage limited resources - sometimes to the point that mission accomplishment depends critically on a technology's availability. Adversaries will attempt to challenge our advantages. Whether Special Operations Forces are prepared to operate in a degraded environment could determine success or failure. This thesis examines the issue of critical technologies in special operations. Critical technologies are defined according to three variables - level of dependence, degree of vulnerability, and substitutability. By examining technologies against these three variables, SOF can gain a better understanding of the impact to SOF operations if a technical capability is lost. Three technologies are examined to illustrate the model - the use of Radar in the Battle of Britain, the Global Positioning System, and UHF Satellite Communications. By applying the model to actual cases, I hope to encourage SOF decision makers to closely examine our growing reliance on vulnerable technologies as a force multiplier and provide recommendations to prevent undue reliance on those technologies</dd>
<dd>Mode of access: World Wide Web</dd>
<dd>System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader 7.0</dd>
<dd>US Air Force (USAF) author</dd>
<dd>dk/dk cc:9116 5/5/00</dd></dl><br>Subjects:</div>
<div class="fn value">
McLaughlin, Lawrence W.</div>
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