Corps Operations (FM 3-92)

The corps design was forged by Napoleon in the early 1800s and became the operational construct for decisive maneuver and exploitation through World Wars I and II, Korea, Panama, Operation Desert Storm, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Today, the corps remains the operational headquarters for decisive land combat and includes enhanced capabilities for full spectrum operations. The corps defines the fight, ensures coherency, conducts operations maneuver, and serves as the bridge to translate strategic guidance into tactical tasks. The corps serves as an essential role as a joint or multinational headquarters for many contingencies. It conducts contingency planning to shape the operational environment, execute decisive operations, integrate interagency and nongovernmental agency efforts, and assess operations. The staff translates the corps commander's visualization into plans and orders. Commanders consider the elements of operational design as they frame the problem and describe their visualization. Field Manual 3-92, "Corps Operations," effectively describes the guiding principles and framework for decisive corps operations. This manual provides direction for the corps headquarters: what it looks like, how it is organized, how its staff operates, how it is commanded and controlled, and how it operates in full spectrum operations. This publication replaces the previous edition of the Army's corps operations manual and describes the organization and operations of the corps. It reflects current doctrine on the elements of full spectrum operations: offense, defense, and stability or civil support. This manual addresses these elements without regard to priority. This manual-Incorporates the Army's operational concept, full spectrum operations, Describes the stand alone corps headquarters, Links brigade combat team and division doctrine with theater army doctrine. It describes the principles underlying the Army modular corps, Shows a corps headquarters designed for four primary employment roles-in priority-an Army intermediate tactical headquarters, an ARFOR, a joint force land component command headquarters, and a joint task force headquarters, Recognizes that the corps headquarters normally requires augmentation with elements from theater-level organizations for selected missions, Discusses when serving as a joint task force or joint force land component command, the corps may require a separate subordinate headquarters to serve as the ARFOR or may need augmentation to serve as both the joint headquarters and the ARFOR, Introduces a staff organization that reflects the warfighting functions discussed in Field Manual (FM) 3-0, Describes the three designated command and control facilities: main command post, tactical command post, and mobile command group, and Describes the ability of the corps headquarters to readily accept joint augmentation from a standing joint force headquarters core element or other joint manning and equipping source. It reflects the hard-earned gains and lessons learned during the conduct of corps operations in Iraq since 2003. The lessons learned continue to reinforce the absolute necessity of the coprs as an operations headquarters. The corps operates in the temporal, physical, and functional realms between the tactical echelons and the strategic theater. It provides the unique capability to orchestrate large, complex operations and synchronize joint, multinational, and interagency actions in a coherent campaign for decisive full spectrum operations. It is through these efforts that tactical actions are linked to accomplish strategic campaign objectives. Recent combat experience validates the enduring truth: the critical component in warfare at all echelons remains the leadership and professionalism of the Soldiers and supporting civilians that comprise the team. Inspired leadership, at the operational level provides the shared vision, purpose, and direction that guide this powerful capabilit