Deployment of forces from the continental United States (CONUS) is becoming more
necessary due to recent closures or losses of overseas bases and assets,
necessitating effective deployment planning. Military deployments are
occurring more quickly than ever due to dispersed and increasingly frequent low-scale operations.
A highly complex problem in military logistics, direct deployment from home station
to theaters along with resupply and sustainment necessitates the use of appropriate technologies.
Technology and cutting-edge logistics theories have dramatically improved the effectiveness
and capacity of transportation in the civilian sector. The emergence of the new technology has
been acknowledged by the Department of Defense's (DoD's) theater commanders in chief (CINCs),
who now frequently demand constant updates and predictions of when the "forces will close."
In addition, Wal-strategy Mart's for replenishment and maintenance is becoming common.
Early deployment goods are typically transported on military equipment in military operations.
Even though they could make up a small part of the whole movement,
these initial actions are frequently the most crucial. Nevertheless, most military supplies,
personnel, and weapons currently travel in commercial vehicles.
For instance, commercial carriers carried more than 95% of the supplies and cargo transported
during Desert Shield and Desert Storm. As a result, the DoD established contracts with
private carriers to guarantee asset availability as required. Competition pressures have, however,
reduced civilian excess capacity and created the need for better cooperation
between the military and civilian carriers in a growing demand for military augmentation.
The rapidly expanding use of technology to identify, track,
and swiftly locate freight and shipments leads to advances in the efficiency of the civil sector.
Global positioning systems, for instance, are now typical in the commercial trucking sector.
These commercial triumphs need to be adopted by the military industry more quickly. Information
technology and computers, communications, network flow models, operations research and logistics
science, design of lift assets, demand reduction, vehicle scheduling, routing, and monitoring are
just a few disciplines that can help with military deployment planning and execution.
Commercial organizations, academic institutions, and national laboratories are working to solve
several military transportation issues. Due to the conservative nature of the military,
the research community has taken the lead in creating and utilizing cutting-edge technologies.
To guarantee that the most recent advancements in transportation are made available to address
military transportation issues, we need a method to connect these groups—military,
business, and research centers. We think that mechanism is the
Committee on Military Transportation of the Transportation Research Board.
Modern computing technologies have been used to construct sophisticated deployment planning,
scheduling, and analysis systems since the 1970s. Still, genuinely impressive
planning and execution systems did not emerge until the middle of the 1990s.
Some procedures, including the Air Deployment Analysis System and the Strategic Deployment
Analysis System, only apply to Component Command. Some operate in the joint space,
such as the Joint Flow Analysis System for Transportation (JFAST), which is developing
into a multimodal system capable of quick no-plan formulation and revision. Several of these systems
have been chosen for further development by the Office of the Secretary of Defense.
These developing decision-support systems are accompanied by an equally outstanding
collection of automated cargo handling, shipment identification, and characterization technologies.
Weigh-in-motion systems can offer real-time data for stow plans,
and bar codes and microchip identification tags are becoming more prevalent. Under the
sponsorship of the U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) and the U.S. Maritime Administration,
the Center for the Commercial Development of Transportation
Technologies (CCDOTT) program is developing cutting-edge automated systems to support
rapid deployment and movement of cargo through both air- and seaports (MARAD).
CCDOTT enhances origin-to-destination mobility and inland, port, and terminal throughput.
Recent efforts have been made by the Tank Automotive Command to create future vehicles
that will require less maintenance, have a minor environmental impact, weigh less,
and can self-diagnose possible problems. Along with this research and development effort,
new propulsion technologies are being created that employ universal fuels
and emit reduced or no target signature emissions. Vehicles will also require
less resupply because they will use less energy and have lighter but stronger armor.
Additionally, strategic lift capabilities are being enhanced. The C-17 is the most recent
addition to the Air Mobility Command's lift capacity, and preliminary research is being
done to see if high-speed sealift capable of 60 knots or more is feasible. The joint logistics
over the shore (JLOTS) issue for off-loading in unimproved ports is also carefully examined.
Future armed forces will be equipped with a wide range of tools for more straightforward
deployment and support and new technologies for better planning and execution. Despite
improvements in throughput capabilities for loading and unloading ships and
airplanes at both origin and destination, significant work still needs to be done.
Motor Carrier
Although it appears that there are enough motor carrier resources to handle surface
transportation, the DoD may experience difficulties finding drivers and assembling
the right mix of specialized transportation. Due to increased competition and deregulation,
motor carriers are now more productive, eliminating the excess capacity that the DoD
had been relying on for surge needs. By investing in organic, specialized fleets, the DoD may be
able to regain some of the lost capability. But collaborating with commercial carriers
and providing incentives to assure adequate capacity seems to be a preferable solution.
Rail Carrier
Due to their security, adaptability, and great capacity, railroads are a popular
mode of transportation during deployment. Accessibility and power of the U.S. railway
system have continuously dropped since 1976. When commercial ownership is impractical,
DoD can buy and maintain crucial track portions as a last resort to stop capacity degradation.
The maintenance of a feeder network to and from the main rail lines depends heavily on shortline
railroads, which were created when the larger railroads concentrated. Only a tiny surtinyof
rolling stock can be used for defense crises. DoD has thus acquired a fleet of over 2,000 railcars.
Inland Water Carrier
In recent years, various entities have examined
the U.S. inland waterway system as a resource to transport military cargo.
Continued application of technology to barge operations and integration of the inland waterway
system into the nation’s intermodal system makes this an area ripe for additional development.
AirDrop
An airdrop is a sort of airlift in which military or civilian aircraft deliver objects like guns,
equipment, humanitarian aid, or leaflets without having to land.
Airdrops, invented during World War II to resupply troops who were frequently
airborne forces themselves, can also allude to the airborne assault itself.
The US usually send their cargo through airdrop by
putting their vehicle into cargo plane such as c-17 globe master, c-5 galaxy,
etc. Although it is one of my used options, it is still an expensive way to send cargo.