text: Sustainment Operations During Armed Conflict
  5-269. Sustainment planners and maneuver commanders conducting offensive operations should be prepared
  to execute reconstitution operations to rebuild combat power. Commanders assess the unit's readiness
  capability and determine the most expedient method to bring the unit to an acceptable combat posture through
  reorganization or regeneration. For additional information on reconstitution, see ATP 3-94.4.
  5-270. While it is advantageous to locate sustainment as far forward as possible in support of offensive
  operations, sustainment planners must be aware of various threats. Planners should anticipate encounters or
  direct action from bypassed enemy forces, SOF, and long-range artillery. Sustainment assets must be mobile
  and able to move with advancing maneuver forces. Planners must avoid large, consolidated bases and form
  dispersed, temporary base clusters. This applies to all bases in corps and brigade security areas.
  5-271. The fluidity and rapid tempo of operations pose challenges when planning for the area security of
  support and rear areas. If the corps or division is to maintain the initiative and combat power necessary for
  the successful performance of offensive operations, the continued forward movement of units and
  sustainment support is critical. Sustainment personnel must also plan and prepare for supporting
  consolidation of gains and security of the support area. Maneuver commanders will assign the rear area to a
  maneuver brigade or division as an AO. Those forces will clear their AO of stay-behind forces and bypassed
  enemy units to ensure friendly freedom of action as their parent corps or division continues to advance. These
  forces should be combined arms organizations specifically task organized for the consolidation of gains
  requirements in their AO. These units begin performing selective stability tasks once the units establish area
  security within the rear area.
  5-272. Risk, uncertainty, and chance are inherent in all military operations. Sustainment professionals must
  seek to understand, balance, and take risks rather than avoid risks to ensure sustainment of the operational
  force. Sustainment commanders must assess and mitigate risk continuously throughout large-scale combat
  operations. The following is a sample list of risk considerations during offensive operations:
  • Are sustainment forces properly dispersed and camouflaged? Are movements into and out of
  sustainment areas coordinated to avoid drawing attention to the area?
  • Does the force have a sufficient number of mobile fueling vehicles to maintain offensive
  momentum? At what point will a loss of tankers cause mission failure?
  • Are sufficient quantities of the correct Class V available for rapid replenishment? Are munition
  caches established forward and their contents dispersed?
  • Are sustainment systems hardened against cyber-attack? How do you validate requirements
  received through electronic systems? Does the threat have the capability to change information
  verses directed denial of service attacks?
  • Do medical units have sufficient Class VIII to address mass casualty events? Do units have enough
  blood and refrigerated storage/wet ice to support patients?
  • Are sufficient recovery vehicles available and placed to support the rapid transportation of disabled
  vehicles to maintenance collection points?
  • Does the enemy have plans to leave stay behind forces to interdict sustainment lines of supply? Do
  friendly forces have sufficient EOD assets available and positioned to remove enemy ordnance or
  improvised explosive devices emplaced on the main supply routes?
  • Are reinforcements available by skill/grade and accessible in sufficient quantity to replace losses
  and maintain units at strength? Which units are the resourcing priority at what points during the
  operation?
  5-273. These considerations and others should be addressed, and mitigation strategies/alternatives developed
  as part of the sustainment plan.
  5-274. Offensive operations place a burden on medical resources due to the magnitude and lethality of forces
  involved. Medical units and commanders at all levels must anticipate increased numbers of casualties as
  corps and division forces advance. Planning for casualty evacuation is a unit-level responsibility. Evacuation
  of the sick and wounded must occur concurrently with operations and requires total force participation or
  support in terms of transportation. Nonmedical vehicles (both air and ground) can be used to transport
  casualties with little or no change in configuration. Units should plan for and train on appropriate use of
  organic vehicles (both air and ground) and equipment (litters) for movement of casualties. See ATP 4-02.13
  for additional information on casualty evacuation. Casualty liaison elements must coordinate with Role 3
  hospitals to ensure accurate tracking and personnel accountability.