The US Army sees a future where its outmatched and outnumbered....

via National Defense.

The Army is too small and could be outgunned in future conflicts, service officials said March 15.

The warnings came at a time when the ground force is shrinking and potential adversaries are improving their military technologies.

“Future Army forces may be not only outnumbered … but we also may face enemies who have overmatch capability over us in some key areas,” Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, deputy commanding general of U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, said at an Association of the United States Army conference in Huntsville, Alabama.

“We see obviously in Europe in particular that we may have Army forces that are also to some degree out of position to deter conflict or then to respond to and resolve conflict,” he added.

Adversary technologies that pose an increasing threat to U.S. forces include: sophisticated air defenses; highly capable anti-tank weapons; unmanned aerial systems and associated swarm capabilities; long-range rockets and artillery; cyber weapons; electronic warfare; anti-satellite capabilities; and advanced combat vehicles.

Meanwhile, the Army’s ability to modernize as well as field and sustain critical capabilities “is being sorely tested on all fronts,” said Katrina McFarland, acting assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, technology and logistics.

The United States has not kept pace with potential adversaries' advanced combat vehicles, McMaster said, noting that other countries are developing better protective systems for their vehicles. The service also falls short on armor, he added.

“Our Army has become too light,” he said. “Some people made some strange assumptions about the nature of future war that really have not panned out right that you just really need to be lean and nimble” to prevail.

Welcome to the SNAFU! view of the future McMaster!  I do consultations at a reasonable cost.

But seriously!  The Army is finally wrapping its head around the truth and the Marine Corps has enough people shouting that its got to know the reality too...so why no pivot to a common sense approach to defense procurement/force sizing?

We have a small window of opportunity to get our house in order.  The Army seems to be adjusting...lets hope the USMC can get its head out too and get ready for that looming future fight.

SIDENOTE:  McMaster's is running TRADOC?  Ok, this means something.  This is straight from Big Army which means that THEY WILL adjust.  This is getting REALLY INTERESTING.  For my Marine Corps Bros, TRADOC is sorta like the Big School House over all the Army's branch specific school houses.  Additionally they serve a sorta Marine Corps University role and that's where they do "thinking about the future".