Stealth

This paper traces the development of stealth as an example of the way in which technology is invented, selected, acquired, and employed by the U.S. Armed Forces. The relationship between technology and the American culture that uses it is the foundation of the discussion. Stealth, as a specific technology, is traced from the prominent position of technology in the American way of war through its employment on the battlefield in Operation DESERT STORM. Lessons from this development highlight the different levels of success achieved by the American way of war as contrasted to the American way of acquisition. Finally, doctrine technology application, future opportunities, and limitations are explored in an effort to flesh out a comprehensive view of how the development of stealth contributed to the American way of war and what lessons can be applied to the key supporting element, the American way of acquisition. The apparent effectiveness of the application of stealth technologies should not imply that the same level of success was achieved in the acquisition of those technologies. The seemingly unplanned convergence of basic research, a well understood requirement, a number of supporting technologies, and the right entrepreneur is compared to a robust application of stealth technology to combat through the medium of doctrine. The author concludes that doctrine does not have the same effect on the technology process selection as it has on its application and that the importance of the human element to technology development has not diminished, but continues to grow.