Summary of Live Warfighting Experimentation at Sea——Concepts, Cases and Methods

The live warfighting experimentation is the key part in development of operation concept and tactics, force application and force structure optimization. It is also an important pillar of the military transformation. This paper describes the related concepts and the scientific and military significance of warfighting experimentation, as well as the main warfighting experimentation organizations and activities of the U.S. Navy. Some historical and modern cases of live warfighting experimentations are introduced, including the famous “Fleet Problem” exercise of the U.S. Navy and the experimental exploration of undersea warfare during the World War II. Some issues about design and implementation of experiment are discussed. It is pointed out that the objective of the experiment should be clearly defined, aiming at dis-covering new phenomena and mechanisms. A reasonable problem frame is a prerequisite for a successful experiment. Systematic planning should be made for a series of experiments to avoid isolated and “jumping” experiments. The ex-perimental factors and levels, and the partitions and specificity of operational scenarios should be considered properly to ensure the effectiveness and confidence of experiment results. A live warfighting experimentation should combine with exercise or training to achieve best results in limited resources condition. Professional teams of analysts and experts are needed to analyze the experimental results and evidence with scientific methods. It is pointed out that the live warfighting experimentation is a necessary way to develop modern warfighting theory.