Contractors on the Battlefield

Contractors have always accompanied our armed forces. However, the increasingly hi-tech nature of our equipment and rapid deployment requirements have significantly increased the need to properly integrate contractor support into all military operations. Recent reductions in military structure, coupled with high mission requirements and the unlikely prospect of full mobilization, mean that to reach a minimum of required levels of support, deployed military forces will often have to be significantly augmented with contractor support. As these trends continue, the future battlefield will require ever increasing numbers of often critically important contractor employees. Accordingly, commanders, staffs, and soldiers must be more familiar with how to plan for and use contractors effectively. This manual, along with an established, formal training program, provides the foundation upon which the Army can promote contractors on the battlefield education.