challenges associated with managing and moving large quantities of equipment and supplies during amphibious operations, most of the committee's effort focuses on logistically supporting a Marine expeditionary force (forward) a much larger task force composed of about 19,000 Marines.

In previous studies,^5,6 the Naval Studies Board addressed some of the logistics problems involved in supporting OMFTS. The present report provides a more complete and up-to-date discussion.

In the next chapter, OMFTS is outlined and described in general terms along with the major logistics implications. Also highlighted are those key features of OMFTS that are open to interpretation and that illustrate why much of the discussion in later chapters must be conditioned on how the Navy and Marine Corps eventually decide to implement the new concepts.

Chapters 3 through 5 focus on major logistics activities that will be affected by OMFTS, i.e., deploying forces, sustaining the forces ashore with supplies and maintenance, and providing medical care to combat casualties. In each, the committee concentrates on those aspects of future logistics operations that warrant near-term planning and analysis priority. Chapter 3 deals primarily with the concepts described in "Maritime Prepositioning Force 2010 and Beyond":⁷ the types and uses of ships and landing craft used to deploy and close the force, and the role an intermediate staging base could play in the operation. In Chapter 4, the implications of sea basing the logistical support for forces ashore and supporting them over very long distances from the sea base are explored. In Chapter 5, the radical changes in medical care motivated by the concepts of OMFTS are discussed. Closing comments are given in Chapter 6. Supplemental information is provided in the appendixes.