PRAOC 2021 - Async

EO 202.01A – DEFINE THE OPERATING ENVIRONMENT AND THE NATURE OF

LAND COMBAT

AIM
1. To both introduce and gain an understanding of the Contemporary Operating Environment
(COE) and the Nature of Land Combat.

SCOPE
2. Land forces will operate in an increasingly complex, interdependent environment in which
they must plan to conduct operations that will influence the physical and cognitive aspects of the
terrain, threats and hazards, the local populace and other systems, actors, and entities within the
environment. They must do so in a comprehensive approach, working within a joint,
inter-agency, multinational and public (JIMP) framework to achieve enduring success. Even in
its most straightforward form, land combat is a complex and dynamic undertaking. It is
characterized by friction, uncertainty, ceaseless change, and violence. Furthermore, it is a
fundamentally human endeavour and is affected by seemingly innumerable factors and variables.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
3. The specific learning objectives are to describe:
a. the Operating Environment, including the physical environment, the local populace,
the adversary, the environmental threat and the JIMP framework; and
b. the Nature of Land Combat, including its enduring characteristics, complexity, and
unpredictability.

PREPARATION

4. Read the following material: B-GL-300-001, Land Operations (2008): Chapter 2 and
Annex A.
5. Skim the following material:
a. The College PPT slide deck for this lesson, on the Learning Portal under
‘Curriculum’ (may be added later)
b. B-GL-310-001, Towards Land Operations 2021 (2009): Chapter 4.
c. B-GL-300-000-AG-003 (2015-EN) Waypoint 2018: The Canadian Army Advancing
Toward Land Operations 2021
d. Frank J Hoffman, Hybrid Warfare and Challenges, Joint Force Quarterly, Number
52, Winter 2009.
 PRAOC 2021 - Async

e. Carl von Clausewitz, On War, ed. and trans. Michael Howard and Peter Paret, ind.
ed. (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1984). Introduction, pages xxvi–xxx and
Book 1, pages 26-27, 44-50 and 61-68.
f. RL.202.01B.00.00.01.04A.SE Contact C : A FOO with TF ORION (Capt A
Charchuk)

QUESTIONS

6. Answer the following questions (as assigned by the Lead) in a single post. You must also
make comment on two other student posts. You should respond to any comments made to your
post.

a. Question 1. Of the various elements that combine to describe the Operating

Environment, which do you think is the most important to military planning at the
tactical level, and why? How does your answer change if the type of operation you
are planning, or the type of enemy you are facing, changes?
b. Question 2. How does an irregular adversary differ from a conventional adversary?
What do we mean by a Hybrid adversary? Illustrate with some examples of recent
operations we have conducted that you are familiar with. What trends do you see in
the development of the adversary threat in the next 5-15 years?
c. Question 3. Why do we say that some of the characteristics of land combat are
“enduring”? Are some becoming more or less important to success in war today?
d. Question 4. Describe what “complexity and unpredictability” mean to you when you
think of the Contemporary Operating Environment (ie. today’s battlefield). What
measures can we take to either eliminate these problems, or to reduce adverse effects
on our mission?