Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore

Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore
Name	Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore
Type	Concept
Role	Logistic support

Contents

Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore.

Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore is a composite logistic concept for transferring personnel, equipment, and materiel between sea and shore when port facilities such as Port of Antwerp or Port of Haiphong are unavailable, contested, or capacity-limited, and is practiced by forces including the United States Marine Corps, United States Army, United States Navy, Royal Navy, and French Navy. It integrates capabilities from organizations such as the Military Sealift Command, Royal Fleet Auxiliary, United States Transportation Command, NATO Allied Command Transformation, and multinational partners including Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, Republic of Korea Navy, and Australian Army to sustain operations from littoral zones to interior lines near objectives like Operation Overlord or Operation Restore Hope.

Overview

Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore links maritime and land logistics through coordinated use of assets like roll-on/roll-off vessels, landing craft utility, causeway systems, and mobile transfer facilities drawn from services such as the United States Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, Naval Amphibious Force, and NATO amphibious groups. The concept supports campaigns ranging from humanitarian responses associated with United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs to contingency operations exemplified by Operation Desert Shield, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and joint amphibious scenarios in the South China Sea or Baltic Sea. Doctrine and capability development have been influenced by publications and commands including Joint Publication 4-01, Marine Corps Warfighting Publication 4-1, NATO Logistics Handbook, and exercises run by Pacific Partnership, RIMPAC, and BALTOPS.

Origins trace to early amphibious innovations demonstrated at events such as the Gallipoli Campaign, D-Day landings, and logistical improvisations during the Korean War and Vietnam War when forces like the Royal Australian Navy and United States Seventh Fleet adapted improvised piers and lighters. Cold War planning involving SACLANT and SHAPE emphasized contingency offload concepts mirrored in programs conducted by Military Sealift Command and industrial partners such as Maersk Line and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines. Post–Cold War operations—Operation Provide Comfort, Operation Unified Protector, and disaster relief after 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami—further refined techniques, while technological advances from firms associated with General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin introduced new craft and automation.

Core doctrine binds joint staffs from entities like Joint Chiefs of Staff, Combatant Command headquarters such as USINDOPACOM and USEUCOM, logistics planners from Defense Logistics Agency, and amphibious commanders from II Marine Expeditionary Force into phased operations: reconnaissance, ship-to-shore movement, sustainment, and recovery. Concepts incorporate contested logistics studied in wargames at institutions such as the Naval War College, Royal United Services Institute, and Center for Naval Analyses, and align with doctrines from U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command and NATO Allied Rapid Reaction Corps addressing anti-access/area denial scenarios influenced by capabilities fielded by People's Liberation Army Navy and Russian Navy.

Common platforms include Landing Ship Tank, Landing Craft Air Cushion, Joint High Speed Vessel, Fast Combat Support Ship, and modular systems like the Improvised Causeway System and the Modular Causeway System. Support equipment ranges from cargo handling gear produced by companies such as Caterpillar Inc. and JCB, to engineering units drawn from organizations like the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Royal Engineers, and French Foreign Legion engineering groups. Integration with logistics nodes leverages ports like Aden Port, Djibouti (city), and staging bases such as Camp Lemonnier and Al Udeid Air Base.

Planning links operational planners from commands like Joint Task Force headquarters, logistics officers from Military Sealift Command, and amphibious task groups commanded by officers educated at the National Defense University and École de Guerre. Execution requires coordination with commercial carriers such as Mediterranean Shipping Company, port authorities like Hamburg Port Authority, and host-nation entities exemplified by Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence (India), and local maritime agencies seen in Indonesia. Timelines, threat assessments, and sustainment models are informed by analyses from RAND Corporation, lessons documented by Center for Strategic and International Studies, and after-action reviews from commands including U.S. Central Command.

Constraints include vulnerability to anti-ship and anti-access systems fielded by actors such as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, Houthis, and state navies of China and Russia, logistical bandwidth limits observed in operations like Operation Iraqi Freedom, and environmental factors seen in Typhoon Haiyan relief. Legal, diplomatic, and interagency issues involve stakeholders such as the United Nations Security Council, International Maritime Organization, and national ministries of defense and transportation. Technical limits include throughput caps of platforms versus commercial ports like Port of Singapore and engineering challenges studied at institutions such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Cranfield University.

Exercises that validate Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore techniques include RIMPAC, BALTOPS, Trident Juncture, Noble Dina, and Cobra Gold, involving participants like Japan Self-Defense Forces, Royal Canadian Navy, German Navy, Indian Navy, and Philippine Navy. Multinational programs such as Pacific Partnership, Sea Breeze, and Bright Star integrate civilian agencies like USAID, Red Cross, and commercial partners exemplified by APM Terminals to rehearse coordination among navies, armies, and logistic organizations including North Atlantic Treaty Organization and regional coalitions.

Category:Military logistics