Talk:Swarming (military)

B class review

Awarded B class. But why have I never heard of swarming in this sense? Is it a recent or minority theory? Perhaps its origins should be discussed. Cyclopaedic (talk) 22:57, 24 November 2007 (UTC)

Swarming isn't a new process, and has certainly been a term used for natural phenomena. It's a more recent definition, especially in the sense of network-centric warfare. I had hoped I made this clear -- Genghis Khan did it, Blitzkrieg didn't qualify with its "pulsing" requisite, but the Battle of Britain, and especially the Battle of Surigao Strait qualified but the term wasn't defined until some of the retrospective papers I cited. Howard C. Berkowitz (talk) 23:03, 24 November 2007 (UTC)

I've tried to look at some of the sources, though I haven't gone as far as buying the papers. I think the article should make it clear that this is a modern theory, and demonstrate that it is widely accepted, or alternatively present it as a minority theory. At present the article reads as if it is presenting established fact, or a tactical approach that has existed for centuries. In fact I don't believe the commanders involved would have seen much in common between their approaches, and would certainly not have said they were swarming.

To my mind (and this is POV) the theory is linking together a series of largely unconnected tactics and situations with some common features and giving them a name. Whether that is useful or not depends on how far the theory is accepted and applied. My opinion doesn't matter, but the article should certainly make it clear that it is discussing a modern theory and discuss how widely accepted or otherwise it is, and what makes it sufficiently notable for inclusion in a encyclopaedia. For instance, is it taught in staff colleges? When did anyone last say, "I know! I'll use swarming tactics!"? Cyclopaedic (talk) 23:18, 9 December 2007 (UTC)

Good observations. Yes, it is taught in the staff colleges, from the perspective of being the kind of operations you'll use when you have enough networking resources and the people trained to use them. Whether swarming is the universal name is a good question; I've heard a presentation which, at first, sounded as if the presenter was drunk, and then the light dawned. He had emphasized that you had to get everyone absolutely synchronized, so they could carry out asynchronous attacks. Asynchronism, information overload, swarming, etc., are all ways to get inside a Boyd OODA loop, or, less formally, getting your enemy doing nothing but reacting and trying to guess where the next attack will come.

You are correct that people used many of these techniques before they had a name; I can argue that Arminius used them against Varrus. In more modern periods, there are things that clearly used the principles, and consciously, but not by that name. For example, certainly from Vietnam on, attack aircraft, if they weren't being micromanaged by politicians, would, whenever possible, use a "wagon wheel" approach. This corresponds to the "pulsing" I mentioned. In the wagon wheel, one or two aircraft might come in high at 270 degrees, and, as soon as it's safe from fragments to overfly the target, another pulse comes in low at 135 degrees. As they are pulling out, there's a medium level pass from 180 degrees. Along with the actual attack runs, there may be manned electronic warfare aircraft, or decoys, coming in at yet different directions, altitudes, separation and speed.

It's a good question who first used the term, and I'll try to track it down. Certainly, Boyd and Warden had its principles in mind, but I don't remember them using the term. Arthur Cebrowski, ISTR, did use the term, and again, ISTR, Thomas Barnett. It's a distinct concept in the Army battle command systems and Future Combat System.

You shouldn't have to buy any of the papers; I'll make sure that every reference is free--I thought they were, but maybe I need more.

Howard C. Berkowitz (talk) 23:33, 9 December 2007 (UTC)