Effective maneuvering at sea to deceive potential enemies of locations and assets is of added importance in an era of threats posed by anti-access area denial (A2AD), the chief of the Navy’s Warfare Development Command said yesterday.
Rear Adm. Terry Kraft told an audience at the beginning of a weeklong Marine expeditionary warfare war games conference that the Navy needs to refocus on maneuvering to deny an enemy’s ability to track and target ships.
“I mean maneuvering constantly to continually change the picture that you’re presenting to the people that are trying to find you,” Kraft said.
The Navy should play to its strengths of sea control, superior command and control, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) to keep the enemy guessing as to the location of fleet and its most vital assets in an A2AD environment, he said.
“If we are able to maneuver effectively and have the kind of freedom of action that we need at sea, they are going to have a very difficult time to target what they care about targeting,” Kraft said.
Expeditionary Warrior 2012 is designed to play out a possible future conflict by assessing the force’s capability to penetrate and operate in an A2AD environment as it is envisioned to exist in 2024. Addressing the challenges posed by A2AD has emerged as a top priority for the Navy and its ability to project power around the world.
There has been growing concern about the rise of technology used by potential adversaries to deny access to key vital water regions around the world, particularly with regard to China’s military buildup. The Obama administration released a new global strategy in January that places greater focus on the Asia-Pacific region.