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| Field Manual 3-0 (Operations) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Field Manual 3-0 |
| Subject | Operations |
| Publisher | United States Army |
| Pub date | 2017 |
| Pages | 336 |
Field Manual 3-0 (Operations) Field Manual 3-0 (Operations) is the principal United States Army doctrine for unified land operations linking strategic objectives to tactical actions, synthesizing concepts from Joint Chiefs of Staff publications, NATO doctrine, and historical practice from campaigns such as Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, and the Gulf War. The manual aligns Army activities with guidance from the National Security Strategy, Department of Defense, and theater commands like U.S. Central Command and U.S. European Command, integrating combined arms, multinational cooperation, and interagency coordination across corps, division, brigade, and battalion echelons.
Field Manual 3-0 situates Army operations within the context of strategic direction from the President of the United States, Secretary of Defense, and combatant commanders such as leaders of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, providing doctrine for campaign design, operational art, and tactical execution informed by historical examples including the Battle of Fallujah, Siege of Sarajevo, and Battle of Mosul (2016–17). It emphasizes integration with joint partners like the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, and coalition partners such as forces from the United Kingdom, France, and NATO members to achieve objectives in complex environments exemplified by Operation Desert Storm and Kosovo War.
The manual codifies key concepts including operational art, decisive action, simultaneous offense, defense, and stability tasks, drawing on theory from thinkers associated with the Prussian General Staff, analyses of the Napoleonic Wars, and lessons from twentieth-century campaigns like the Western Front (World War I). It formalizes terms such as decisive point, center of gravity, operational reach, tempo, and culmination with references to doctrinal development influenced by the Pentomic Division debates, post-World War II reforms toward the Pentagon-led joint force, and adaptations after Vietnam War counterinsurgency. Doctrine links to joint constructs found in the Goldwater–Nichols Act reforms and interoperability considerations from the Normandy landings through modern coalition operations.
FM 3-0 defines command relationships among headquarters such as corps, division, brigade combat teams, and battalions while coordinating with joint task forces, interagency partners like the U.S. Agency for International Development, and multinational headquarters exemplified by ISAF. It outlines authorities for combatant commanders, theater armies, and unified commands drawing parallels with command arrangements used during Operation Allied Force and Operation Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan. The manual addresses liaison functions with organizations such as United Nations missions, NATO Allied Command Operations, and multinational coalitions seen in the Coalition of the Willing.
The manual categorizes operations into offense, defense, stability, and support, articulating phases such as shaping, decisive, and stabilization lines similar to phase frameworks used in Operation Iraqi Freedom and the Anbar Awakening. It addresses large-scale combat operations akin to hypothetical scenarios derived from historical contests like Battle of Kursk and expeditionary campaigns comparable to Battle of Guadalcanal, and includes considerations for irregular warfare as observed in the Soviet–Afghan War and counterinsurgency lessons from Iraq War provinces.
FM 3-0 prescribes planning processes including the military decision-making process (MDMP), mission command, and frameworks for campaign design tied to strategic guidance from the National Defense Strategy and theater objectives set by commanders in examples such as Operation Enduring Freedom. It integrates tools for intelligence-driven planning with inputs from organizations like the Defense Intelligence Agency, historical intelligence failures analyzed from Pearl Harbor and Yom Kippur War, and decision cycles used in Operation Overlord and Operation Torch.
The manual addresses execution under mission command, synchronization with joint fires from platforms like B-52 Stratofortress, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), and allied assets, and sustainment functions including logistics, medical support, and strategic mobility via assets such as Military Sealift Command and C-17 Globemaster III. It draws on logistics lessons from campaigns like Operation Desert Shield, the Red Ball Express of World War II, and sustainment challenges identified during Operation Just Cause and humanitarian responses like Hurricane Katrina relief.
FM 3-0 emphasizes continuous training and assessment through institutions like the United States Military Academy, Army War College, National Training Center, and exercises such as Exercise Trident Juncture and Bright Star. It codifies adaptation mechanisms reflecting reforms after studies of After-Action Review practices used following Operation Iraqi Freedom and doctrinal evolution influenced by analyses of campaigns from World War II through contemporary conflicts like the Syrian Civil War. The manual endorses lessons learned repositories maintained by entities such as the Center for Army Lessons Learned and promotes multinational interoperability evident in operations like Operation Inherent Resolve.