The most important field of the Armed Forces

Today this is a trick question.Who was the upper hand in the Military.Is it the Army,Navy or Air Force?Personally I think that the Navy is the most important because it has the submarine capability which is very powerful indeed.(that´s why I´m applying to my countries´navy school)

What do you think?

 

In general, or for specific countries?

In terms of disruption, or as an effective tool to act as an extension of politics?

What impact does determining the answer have on policy decisions, personal decisions, society, etc?

 

I don't have much experience in military matters, but I'd have to go with the Air Force.

Most modern warfare seems to be conducted primarily by the air, with Afghanistan and Iraq being prime examples.

- TSB.

 

I think it depends on what your objectives are, as each branch of service has different roles and capabilities. The Navy is great for power projection, especially the carrier groups that have self-contained sea, air, and ground forces. The Air Force provides force against strategic targets and is great in situations where we have limited objectives and want to keep our own casualties low. But if you want to take and occupy territory, you have to have troops on the ground, and that means the Army or the Marines, usually the Army because of their greater size and resources.

The different branches of the armed forces should complement each other, but that is so often cirumvented by our defense budget process and parochialism between the services as they fight for relevance and squabble over limited funds.

 

I pretty much agree with DarthLothi

TheScarletBanner Good point, however airplanes are limited by range, so they need a base, that's close to the target, to fly from. Navy also have this problem but it's months before they need to go back to port.

I've a question though are aircraft carriers part of the navy or air force?

It seems logical that it is a part of the navy, because it's a boat . However the airforce has more uses for it then navy...

 

I believe aircraft carriers are jointly operated vehicles. Or they may fall in the navy's air force. However I might be wrong. It's been a while.

 

Aircraft Carriers are most definatly Navy.

To answer the question of the thread, I think Navy might be most important by a little bit. Mainly because of the whole projection of power.

 

The Navy has the cabability of using air craft. Also, in Britain the military often use joint forces operations consisting of elements from all the services.

However, for the most important field in the armed forces (rather than the most important branch) must be Intelligence. In the UK this is the Defence Intelligence Staff (DIS), The Secret Service (MI6), The Security Service (MI5) and GCHQ (Government Communications Head Quarters) - all of which play a vital role in supporting our military planning and personnel on the ground.

 

The Air Force is pretty powerful because most of their planes (unlike the Navy) have unlimited range because of extensive foreign bases, aerial refueling, and the no size restrictions and compromises most Navy/Marine aircraft have. The Air Force is the most politically favorite force because it dehumanizes conflict because they suffer few casualties, and need less ordinance to destroy targets. Some countries (ex. Indonesia) are water-locked, some countries (ex. Afghanistan) are land-locked, but every country has air (and space) above it. The Air Force is also the main contributor to bleeding edge technologies. Almost all new technologies have some Air Force influence in their development (missiles, NBC, radars, materials, GPS, stealth, etc.). Also, the Air Force controls space, making it invaluable in communications, reconaissace, and survellience.
The obvious problems are the inability to occupy territory, mobile power projection, and inability to sustain combat (tanks and ships can fight much longer than a plane that must return to a base to refuel and rearm frequently) and must rely on other services to accomplish those goals. But of all the services, the Air Force is very independent of the other services.

 

I would have to say the army or the air force, both have an elite and better fighting chance than the navy, methinks. But my number one choice is the army.

 

What about the nuclear subs?They are almost undectatable,can stay over a year underwater without coming to port and they can wipe out entire areas with nuclear missiles.They are so effective that the only good counter-measure against a nuclear submarine is another nuclear submarine!

 

Gotta agree with D_A, I mean, "Dead As a doornail". Intelligence. Without it, the armed forces lack the necessary background knowledge about any given area they're about to kick the crap out of.

E_S

 

I never said the navy isn't important, i was just thinking of the Air Force and Army as more effective.

 

It appears that in the modern warfare exemplified by Afghanistan, airplanes get the predominant role, esp. bombers. In terms of Army, you have occupational forces, and maybe SpecOps teams, but no more of the big Napoleonic land battles (which I love so much!). In terms of Navy, you have aircraft carriers to launch (once again) planes, but it seems like ships like destroyers and cruisers are primarily used for escort purposes and not for Star Wars-esque battles or shore bombardments (which I also enjoy). Then there's Marines, which are like SpecOps.

So to answer your question, it'd probably be Air Force, in this day and age.

 

The Air Force is pretty powerful because most of their planes (unlike the Navy) have unlimited range because of extensive foreign bases,

It's not unlimited, it is limited. We're speaking in general, not US. Not every country has extensive foreign bases.

Many people are underrestimating the navy, they seem to be forgetting navies long range capabilities and that the world consists 2/3 of water

 

The Air Force also has long range capabilities. Ever heard of ICBM's?

All branches of the military serve their purpose well. None of these branches could function well without the others.

 

Actually, I am pretty sure most of the forces used in Afghanistan were Navy.

 

The Air Force also has long range capabilities. Ever heard of ICBM's?

Long range <> unlimited

Air planes are limited by range, no matter how far it is.

I heard of ICBM's and last time I checked it was a missle that can be launched from a naval vessel, stationary ground base and a stealth bomber.

So ICBM's are also part of the navy and ground army. (it's a missle, not an aircraft)

None of these branches could function well without the others.

That's not true, the ground forces and navy pretty much did their job for 2000 years without the Air force.

And some countries don't need a navy because they don't border a sea (e.g Austria, Switzerland, Mongalia, Nepal)

 

Actually, I am pretty sure most of the forces used in Afghanistan were Navy.

Only a precentage, Afghanistan is not all water.

 

The quartermasters for each service.

Without them, none of the ships, planes or troops can get anywhere, much less fight.

To directly answer the question, it just depends on the type of mission. Each service has its strong abilities and its limits. You have to decide what kind of job you want in the military and then decide.

 

So ICBM's are also part of the navy and ground army. (it's a missle, not an aircraft)
Just because it is not a plane, doesn't mean it is not Air Force (the Air Force also has other non flying jobs, including para rescue and special investigations). Many ICBM's are launched from missile silos which are run by the Air Force.

Air planes are limited by range, no matter how far it is

Many cargo planes can refuel while in flight. Ships are also limited by speed. A plane can move troops and equiptment much faster.

That's not true, the ground forces and navy pretty much did their job for 2000 years without the Air force.

And some countries don't need a navy because they don't border a sea (e.g Austria, Switzerland, Mongalia, Nepal)

I am thinking of the U.S. Armed Forces, and the Armed Forces of our allies today, becuase that is what I thought was the subject of the thread, not Switzerland, or Ancient Rome.

 

I am thinking of the U.S. Armed Forces, and the Armed Forces of our allies today, becuase that is what I thought was the subject of the thread, not Switzerland, or Ancient Rome.

Slight communication problem, I thought we're speaking in general.

Many cargo planes can refuel while in flight. Ships are also limited by speed. A plane can move troops and equiptment much faster.

True, but ships can also refuel at sea, ships can transport a much larger quantity of weapons, equipment and troops.

So at the end there is no most important field in the Armed Forces, they're all important equally.

 

The Marine Corps, baby.

 

SouthernJedi is correct. It completely depends on what type of combat you are engaged in. In most modern day scenarios you will find that all branches of the Armed Forces are used in conjuction with each other.

To really make a statement regarding the importance of a specific branch of service one would have to understand the explicit details of each, at every level. That includes standard troops, Special Forces, Officers, Bases, equipment, armaments, vehicles, etc.

I would be 100% certain that none of us possess such vast knowledge on this arena.

 

No one ever mentions the cooks.

"Without cooks in the fleet, the fleet don't eat."--Naval cook saying.