American Guerrilla by Mike Guardia details the story of Russell W. Volckmann and his heroic efforts fighting the Japanese in the Philippines during World War II (WWII). Mike Guardia claims Russell W. Volckmann is the “True Father of Special Forces” and provides a compelling argument for this position. In his book, he describes how Volckmann evaded capture by the Japanese in Bataan, escaped to the mountains of North Luzon, organized a guerrilla force of over 22,000 fighters, and waged a successful guerrilla campaign from 1942 to 1945. Following WWII, Volckmann authored the US Army’s first two field manuals regarding guerrilla warfare and was instrumental in establishing the Special Forces Regiment, as we know it today.
Although Volckmann achieved …show more content…
With no conventional army to provide support and the Japanese occupying all major population centers, local purchase was the only method of sustainment. Volckmann’s only method to replace weapons and munitions was battlefield resupply. Once the USAFIP-NL establishes radio communications with General MacArthur’s forces, resupply operations commence with the use of submarines (Guardia, 2012). This method is used a number of times but proves risky and unsustainable. Japanese aerial patrols, naval patrols and land patrols all present serious threats to these operations. The complexity of the coordination, link-up, and exposure of these operations makes them very dangerous. If the war had continued for a longer period, these methods may not have been sustainable. While this method is effective, it is not a smooth process. Japanese Army, Navy, and Air Force all provide threats to this method. Understanding the concepts of Non-Standard Logistics (NSL) could have provided options for Volckmann to resupply his forces. Despite the Japanese occupation, daily life continued and there was regular exports and imports. There are number options Volckmann could have used that would have minimized the Risk to Force and Risk to
Although Volckmann achieved …show more content…
With no conventional army to provide support and the Japanese occupying all major population centers, local purchase was the only method of sustainment. Volckmann’s only method to replace weapons and munitions was battlefield resupply. Once the USAFIP-NL establishes radio communications with General MacArthur’s forces, resupply operations commence with the use of submarines (Guardia, 2012). This method is used a number of times but proves risky and unsustainable. Japanese aerial patrols, naval patrols and land patrols all present serious threats to these operations. The complexity of the coordination, link-up, and exposure of these operations makes them very dangerous. If the war had continued for a longer period, these methods may not have been sustainable. While this method is effective, it is not a smooth process. Japanese Army, Navy, and Air Force all provide threats to this method. Understanding the concepts of Non-Standard Logistics (NSL) could have provided options for Volckmann to resupply his forces. Despite the Japanese occupation, daily life continued and there was regular exports and imports. There are number options Volckmann could have used that would have minimized the Risk to Force and Risk to