The roar is deafening as round after round of high explosive artillery fire impacts the woodline. Captain Andrew T. Winslow and the hundred-odd soldiers of Team Alpha remain under cover in their prepared positions. The Soviet barrage had begun twenty minutes earlier. Its intensity and duration indicate to them that the Soviet attack will reach their positions shortly.

On this fourth day of the war, Team Alpha occupies its assigned battle position - a woodline on a small hill overlooking a major east-west four lane highway. The company-sized team is composed of two mechanized infantry platoons, one tank platoon, and attached support elements. The previous day, the Soviet first echelon division had attacked along the highway and all three of its regiments had been badly mauled. The U.S. commanders knew the second echelon would resume the attack shortly. In the interval, Team Alpha improved its positions, received a full combat load of ammunition, maintained their fighting vehicles, and had a cold meal. The ammunition had been badly needed - more than forty TOW2 missiles had been expended; most of the tanks had been down to their last sabot rounds -the teenaged gunners had fired more ammo during the first attack than they had during their entire Army careers to that point.

The troops of the team were tired but elated with their success. But the officers and NCOs knew a massive struggle lay ahead as the Soviet second echelon renewed the attack. The leaders couldn't provide the time for rest, but they could and did ensure the team was ready for the next fight.

During the last few hours, the air space over the battle position had been very active. Several flights of attack helicopters and ground attack aircraft had flown over to attack the approaching Soviet forces, providing encouragement for the men. They knew the targets of these attacks would never reach the main battle area. Another morale booster was the sight of increasing numbers of Allied aircraft.

Two hours earlier, the battle had resumed in the covering force area in front of them. Sights and sounds of battle occasionally reached the team's position. The covering force did its job: the Soviets were slowed, providing the additional preparation time needed by the team and the other units of the brigade, and it had identified the main axes of advance. Unfortunately, the team's position remained a major Soviet objective. Their task force commander had passed the word that they could expect to be engaged shortly. The covering force was withdrawing through Brigade lines, handing off the battle to the units along the FEBA. Final preparations were underway when the Soviet's artillery barrage began.

Lieutenant Pavel Timoshilov strains to detect any enemy activity through the periscopes of his T-80 main battle tank. He leads his platoon in march column along the highway, keeping the rate of movement as high as possible without being overly careless with security. According to his briefing, the U.S. positions are expected beyond the next curve. His orders are simple: maintain formation and advance until engaged.

Behind his tank stretches the rest of his battalion. They had started the day as the second echelon battalion, but the lead unit had become engaged with a U.S. cavalry unit it could not overrun or bypass quickly. Timoshilov's battalion had led the rest of the regiment around the blocking position and back onto the axis of advance. Bypassed, the cavalry unit had withdrawn to the northwest.

As the T-80 rounds the curve, Timoshilov sees the last rounds of the pre-planned artillery barrage landing near a woodline. He scowls as he sees some of the explosives are landing in the open area short of the woods. He knows more damage would have been done and the enemy would have been effectively suppressed if the rounds had been observed and corrected into the woods where the enemy would dig in. He automatically turns his turret to aim the tank's main gun toward any target that should appear. As he presses against the periscope, however, all he can see is a smoke-filled woodline. The column races on.

The artillery barrage lifts. The gunners spot the column of tanks across the valley. As the Soviets reach the edge of the mine field, Winslow gives the order to commence firing. Company SOP divides the enemy column into platoon sized targets. The tanks and TOWs open fire.

Battle is joined.

Results

The results of the hypothetical battle - and the survival of the soldiers involved - depend on a combination of marksmanship, leadership, equipment, training, luck, and tactics. Underlying the training and tactics of each unit, U.S. and Soviet, is the doctrine used to prepare for and conduct combat operations.

The doctrine of an army is the result of decades of analysis of friendly capabilities, the intentions and capabilities of potential enemies, the battlefield environment, national objectives, and technological developments. Doctrine is developed and modified to provide the units of an army with guidance for training and fighting. The concept is integral to a professional army. Without it, an army could not develop into a cohesive force of trained units. It would remain, instead, a collection of armed mobs operating as disjointed, undisciplined forces.

Doctrine is completely integrated into the structure of a professional army. Training schools impart current doctrine as they train soldiers and units. All unit training is guided by this. Doctrine also serves as a commander's yardstick to measure the quality of his unit's and soldiers' training.

Army combat doctrine is constantly reviewed, modified and updated as necessary. To effect a change of doctrine in the field is a time-consuming affair. The new information has to be developed, disseminated, learned, and trained. Resistance to change at the unit level, along with the difficulty of retraining a unit, produces an inertial effect concerning doctrine. A unit will oppose change until sufficient effort is exerted.

A trained army will operate in accordance with its doctrine's guidelines. In combat, soldiers and units will perform as they did in training, with habits and tactics learned in peacetime becoming automatic in the chaos of battle. Combat experience may prompt a subsequent modification of doctrine, but that will take time the units and soldiers usually don't have.

Any serious analysis of a potential conflict between Soviet and American forces in Europe must begin by examining, comparing, and contrasting the current doctrine of both armies. The doctrines of both the U.S. and the Soviet Union have been developed to maximize their army's success in any conflict that should occur. To fully understand recent developments in the modern battle doctrines of each army, it is helpful to first review the strategic objectives of each nation, the recent history of each doctrine, the weapons and equipment on each side, and the potential battlefield.

More Modern Battle Doctrine

Introduction
Objectives and Doctrine
Weapons and Doctrine
Terrain and Doctrine
Soviet Army Doctrine
US Doctrine: AirLand Battle