Desert Warfare
Desert Warfare.The nature of deserts—arid, barren regions lacking sources of fresh water—makes combat operations there particularly demanding on troops and equipment. Additionally, deserts frequently lack readily identifiable landmarks, making map reading and navigation very difficult. Though visibility tends to be excellent at extreme ranges, cover and concealment are minimal. Thus, modern desert warfare tends to mean armored and mechanized warfare.
For many years U.S. doctrine failed to address desert warfare. During World War II, U.S. forces suffered heavy losses in the opening phase of the North Africa Campaign (1942–43) at the hands of German and Italian troops at Sidi‐bou‐Zid and the Kasserine Pass in Tunisia. Stung by these defeats, American forces learned quickly and fared somewhat better later.
After the war, American military doctrine focused on the defense of Europe, and desert warfare...
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