Operational Readiness

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Organizing, training, and equipping armed forces for combat is essential to ensure their success in the field. RAND research provides military decisionmakers with information and analyses to implement effective support, training, and acquisition policies that ensure the highest level of operational readiness, even in the face of increasingly fluid combat environments.

  • The Embarked Security Team (EST) on Board USNS Rainier (T-AOE 7), along with Sailors from Coastal Riverine Squadron THREE's (CRS-3) boarded on Riverine Command Boats (RCBs), defend the vessel using dazzler non-lethal weapon and blank rounds during a simulated attack as it departs to support ships during Rim of the Pacific 2016. Twenty-six nations, comprising over 40 ships and submarines and over 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC from June 30 to Aug. 4 in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California. RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain the cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans. RIMPAC 2016 is the 25th iteration in the series that began in 1971 and is the world's largest international maritime exercise, photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Martin Wright/U.S. Navy

    Report

    How to Effectively Assess the Impact of Non-Lethal Weapons as Intermediate Force Capabilities

    Jan 18, 2022

    The U.S Department of Defense needs to be able to assess the tactical, operational, and strategic impact of non-lethal weapons to inform how and when they should be used and their integration into overall DoD capabilities. How do non-lethal weapons contribute to overarching DoD goals?

  • Spc. Kiana Malbas, an automated logistical specialist, performs a two-mile run during a diagnostic Army Combat Fitness Test in Los Angeles, California, July 17, 2021, photo by SFC Christopher Oposnow/U.S. Army

    Report

    Evidence to Support New Army Combat Fitness Test Is Incomplete

    Mar 23, 2022

    The U.S. Army has a new fitness test for the first time in 40 years. A review finds that more evidence is needed to prove that all six test events adequately predict performance on combat tasks and that combat standards are a necessary metric for all Army jobs. Women, National Guard troops, and others are passing the test at lower rates.

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