Honing the Keys to the City

Refining the United States Marine Corps Reconnaissance Force for Urban Ground Combat Operations

Russell W. Glenn, Jamison Jo Medby, Scott Gerwehr, Frederick J. Gellert, Andrew O'Donnell

ResearchPublished 2003

U.S. forces have little live-fire experience with urban warfare, and much of that experience is dated (Hue, South Vietnam, in 1968 and Panama City, Panama, in 1989) or more suited as a negative example (Mogadishu, Somalia). This report seeks to identify current shortfalls in the area of urban ground combat reconnaissance and provide input to assist in the creation of urban combat reconnaissance tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTP) for the U.S. Marine Corps. The authors discuss four distinct challenges: the constant adaptation demanded by the environment, the complexity of tactical ground reconnaissance in built-up areas, the extraordinary demands of urban operations on military personnel, and the unique demands of these operations on equipment and technology. The analysts' main purpose is to narrow the gap between the sum of these challenges and the doctrinal, training, and equipment solutions immediately or soon-to-be at hand.

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Glenn, Russell W., Jamison Jo Medby, Scott Gerwehr, Frederick J. Gellert, and Andrew O'Donnell, Honing the Keys to the City: Refining the United States Marine Corps Reconnaissance Force for Urban Ground Combat Operations. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2003. https://www.rand.org/pubs/monograph_reports/MR1628.html.
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The research described in this report was sponsored by the United States Marine Corps. The research was conducted in RAND's National Defense Research Institute, a federally funded research and development center.

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