ATP-3-94-2 HIMARS Deep Operations Download
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1 September 2016 ATP 3-94.2 2-1 Chapter 2 Deep Operations in the Operations Process Deep operations are not planned and executed in isolation. Instead, they contribute to the larger operational plan. Commanders, supported by their staffs, use the operations process to identify opportunities to conduct deep operations and integrate them into the concept of the operation. This chapter discusses the operations process and the commander’s role within it. Additionally, this chapter describes how deep operations are nested into the four major activities of the operations process. OPERATIONS PROCESS 2-1. The Army’s framework for exercising mission command is the operations process—the major mission command activities performed during operations: planning, preparing, executing, and continuously assessing the operation (ADP 5-0). Commanders, supported by their staffs, use the operations process to drive the conceptual and detailed planning necessary to understand, visualize, and describe their operational environment; make and articulate decisions that are consistent with the Army Ethic; and direct, lead, and assess military operations as depicted in Figure 2-1. Figure 2-1. The operations process 2-2. The activities of the operations process are not discrete as they overlap and recur as circumstances demand. Planning starts an iteration of the operations process. Upon completion of the initial order, planning continues as leaders revise the plan based on changing circumstances. Preparation begins during planning and continues through execution. Execution puts a plan into action by applying combat power to seize, retain, and exploit the initiative to gain a position of relative advantage. Assessment is continuous and influences the other three activities. While simple in concept (plan, prepare, execute, and assess), the operations process is dynamic. Commanders and staffs use the operations process to integrate numerous tasks that are executed throughout the headquarters and with subordinate units. Deep operations are planned, prepared, executed,