Bradley Martin

The Problem of Surge Capacity

The vulnerability of supply chains to routine disruptions has been widely discussed and documented, but meeting such challenges can be even more difficult during unexpected surges in demand caused by wars, public health crises, or other emergencies. The creation of option contracts that would kick in during surges is one promising solution.

So Many Questions, So Little Time for Pacific Logistics

The United States has been struggling to “pivot to the Pacific” for over a decade, and one of the major missing pieces is logistics. It is critical that the logistics underpinning a credible military deterrent be figured out now.

Ohio's Train Derailment—Not Spy Balloons—Is the Real National Security Threat

The slow degradation of infrastructure and disaster response is less a spectacle than an overflying balloon, but the train derailment and chemical spill in Ohio highlights just how bizarre such a focus on perceived external national security threats has become. The far greater threat may be from within.

Will Logistics Be Russia's Undoing in Ukraine?

Russia's experience in Ukraine one year in is an example of what happens when a nation tries to fight a war without fully considering the logistics and sustainment that go alongside such a fight. The consequences for failing to fully consider these concepts drove Russia into a prolonged conflict for which it was already ill-prepared a year ago, with increasingly dire consequences for its future.

How Big of a Fleet? A Look at the U.S. Navy's Size and Readiness Needs

Congress is trying to nudge the Navy to expand the size of the fleet. But without comparable levels of funding for personnel, maintenance, technology upgrades, logistics and other support functions, a larger fleet could come at the cost of readiness.

The Problem of Intra-Theater Lift: Moving Things Around in the Pacific Area of Responsibility

The U.S. joint force's ability to move materiel and people across oceans and continents is unique among militaries. But there are challenges all along the supply chain, addressed by different agencies and military commands in a complicated set of processes, and a collective reluctance to assume responsibility for the mission.

Unblocking the Black Sea for Ukrainian Grain

As Russia has been blockading ports around Odesa, Ukrainian grain exports in May were more than 60 percent lower than a year ago. Global hunger has hit a new high while 22 million tons of grain in Ukraine could rot if not exported soon.

Supply Chain Disruptions: The Risks and Consequences

With interdependence comes risk, and in the case of supply chains, these risks often are not fully appreciated. A systematic effort, cutting across agencies and public and private sectors, could be one way to ensure that vulnerabilities are understood and mitigated.

Military and Defense-Related Supply Chains

After the Cold War, U.S. logistics planners moved away from a focus on effectiveness to a focus on efficiency in the sense that little is left idle for significant periods and that commodities are delivered at minimum cost. The ability of the system to support the joint force in the event of major conflict is at best untested and could be problematic.

Supply Chains and National Security—the Lessons of the COVID-19 Pandemic

The many pandemic-related shortages that occurred in the United States and elsewhere provide a clear warning. Serious supply-chain vulnerabilities exist. We need to learn much more about this potential threat to national security.

Supply Chains and National Security

Lessons from the pandemic will be sorted through for years. But one thing seems very clear: The United States is not ready in a policy or infrastructure or even physical-capacity sense to respond to major shocks to its supply chains.

Russia Is Eyeing the Mediterranean. The U.S. and NATO Must Be Prepared

Russia is seeking more access and freedom of movement in the Mediterranean region, and is bolstering its military footprint to achieve this objective. The United States and NATO could respond by developing a more robust southern strategy, with a reinforced air and naval presence, respectively.

No Russian Let-Up on Ukraine

Moscow's seizure of Crimea and war in eastern Ukraine have led the West to sanction Russians and expand aid to Ukraine, and NATO to shift land and air forces eastward. Expanded Russian coercion may draw more NATO naval power closer to Russia’s shores and lead to tougher sanctions.

Report

Revisiting RAND's Russia Wargames After the Invasion of Ukraine: Summary and Implications

This report summarizes reexamined RAND tabletop exercises involving Russia from the past eight years in a review of wargaming methods and analysis and presents implications for future potential conflicts involving major powers.

Report

Impact of Individual Augmentation Policy on Navy Reserve Force Readiness

The authors examine the evolution of individual augmentation—from a stopgap to standard practice—and the effects on the Navy Reserve in terms of readiness and deployment times, specifically relating to anti-terror operations and the 2019 pandemic.

Report

Russian Logistics and Sustainment Failures in the Ukraine Conflict: Status as of January 1, 2023

The Russian military's battlefield performance has not lived up to expectations since its invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. The authors examine the issues of logistics and sustainment facing Russia's forces throughout its campaign against Ukraine.

Report

The Backbone of U.S. Joint Operations: Army Roles in the Indo-Pacific

The authors of this report seek to provide an engaging and structured illustrated narrative to more clearly describe the U.S. Army's role throughout the Indo-Pacific region in the present day and into 2035.

Report

Supply Chain Interdependence and Geopolitical Vulnerability: The Case of Taiwan and High-End Semiconductors

The authors conducted a tabletop exercise to assess the geopolitical implications of Taiwan's semiconductor dominance and the vulnerabilities of the semiconductor supply chain using two scenarios in which China attempted to unify with Taiwan.

Commentary

Lessons Learned from the COVID-19 Outbreak: Preventing and Managing Future Pandemics

This collection of essays describes missteps made and lessons of critical importance learned during the global and U.S. response to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, with the goal of improving preparedness and preventing future pandemics.

Report

Implications of a Coercive Quarantine of Taiwan by the People's Republic of China

The authors examine how China might enact a quarantine of Taiwan, potential U.S. and allied responses to the crisis, and implications related to economic interdependencies and supply chain challenges.

Report

Readiness Implications of Coronavirus Infections on U.S. Navy Ships

COVID-19 drew attention to the fissures in the U.S. Navy's readiness to respond to major medical events. The authors look at the challenges posed by the pandemic and the Navy's response to examine broader implications for readiness in the Navy.

Report

Measuring Strategic Readiness: Identifying Metrics for Core Dimensions

The authors explore a more expansive approach to readiness assessments that goes beyond the narrow lens of operational readiness and considers a broader set of dimensions that could affect readiness outcomes.

Report

Naval Surface Fire Support: An Assessment of Requirements

The authors developed recommendations to improve existing formal requirements and technological solutions regarding naval surface fire support, a way for the U.S. Navy to provide the equivalent of artillery support for forces operating ashore.

Report

Approaches to Strategic Sealift Readiness

The authors examine the readiness of the strategic sealift fleet and its management. They determine that many factors can be improved to increase readiness and make recommendations toward that end.

Report

NATO's Amphibious Forces: Command and Control of a Multibrigade Alliance Task Force

RAND researchers facilitated three wargaming events to explore command and control of NATO's amphibious forces in major combat operations. The authors note results and implications for future force development.

Report

Advancing Autonomous Systems: An Analysis of Current and Future Technology for Unmanned Maritime Vehicles

In this report, RAND researchers explore current and potential military applications of autonomous systems, focusing especially on unmanned undersea vehicles and unmanned surface vehicles.

Report

An Approach to Life-Cycle Management of Shipboard Equipment

The authors analyze trends in the life-cycle management of common shipboard equipment on U.S. Navy surface ships and recommend steps to improve the readiness of this equipment, increase its efficiency, and reduce sustainment costs.

Report

Future Aircraft Carrier Options

This report is an exploration of possible alternatives to potentially replace the U.S. Navy's legacy aircraft carrier force as it begins reaching expected service life. This is neither a formal analysis of alternatives nor detailed engineering study.

Report

A Strategic Assessment of the Future of U.S. Navy Ship Maintenance: Challenges and Opportunities

This report assesses possible supply and demand capabilities in the ship maintenance workload for the U.S. Navy and notes long-term challenges facing mitigation efforts.

Testimony

Amphibious Operations in Contested Environments: Insights from Analytic Work

Testimony presented before the House Armed Services Committee, Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces on May 18, 2017.

Tool

Navy Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution: A Reference Guide for Senior Leaders, Managers, and Action Officers

This tool documents key but enduring aspects of how the Navy implements the Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution process so that action officers and Navy leaders can successfully navigate and effectively contribute to the process.

Report

Assessment of Surface Ship Maintenance Requirements

This report by the National Defense Research Institute (NDRI) examines the impact of the U.S. government's fiscal challenges on the U.S. Navy's surface ship maintenance and operations requirements.

Report

Acquisition of Space Systems, Volume 7: Past Problems and Future Challenges

As Department of Defense plans for the next-generation space systems in an increasingly challenging fiscal and security environment, it is important to apply lessons learned from past space acquisition, which had experienced many difficulties.

Report

Assessment of Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) Training Activity

This report assesses whether the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization's programs and functions may be duplicative with those of the military Services, U.S. Special Operations Command, and other agencies.