One of Ours

Learning from ones mistakes, or successes, is one of the less talked about techniques the American military uses to stay ahead of potential battlefield opponents...For generations, learning from past experience was via veterans of past wars, historians and journalists writing books and magazine articles on "the lessons." This was a hit or miss approach...

...Currently, wargames (mostly computer ones, but a few manual games are still used) provide staff officers and planners with an opportunity to revisit recent military operations. This has become a lot easier to do in the last few years, as military wargames became more like commercial wargames. The major improvements have been in ease of use, and the ability to quickly change things and rapidly run through a battle or operation again and again. In this way, operations in Iraq and Afghanistan (and elsewhere) over the past 30 months can be played out in endless variations. This is important, because the next battle may be fought with the same weapons and equipment, but not with the same ideas, opponents, or results...

...These "what ifs?" are also played out for the operations after Saddam's government was run out of business. Irregular warfare can be wargamed as well. Both the Iraqi and Afghan operations are constantly wargamed to see what new equipment or tactics might work better to end the fighting and save American lives...

...Taking the uncertainty out of battlefield "what ifs?" is not as difficult as it appears, if you have the right tools and know how to use them.