United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2001-11-28 monographic deposited born digital 17 p. GA 1.13:GAO-02-99 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-99 P0b002ee180396dab f:d0299 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-24 GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-99 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-99 GAO-02-99 Armed forces abroad Combat readiness Logistics Military airlift operations C-17 Aircraft DOD Mobility Requirements Study Europe F-15 Aircraft Middle East Other Written Product A02473

The United States maintains 100,000 military personnel permanently stationed in Europe. These forces and their supporting infrastructure provide rapid response in the event of a military crisis and help shape the international environment. These forward-deployed forces and equipment also facilitate the movement of U.S. forces to an area of operations. DOD has not quantified the impact of a forward presence in Europe on mobility requirements. However, Defense officials believe that, without forward-deployed forces and equipment in Europe, mobility requirements and costs would be considerably higher and deployment times longer, increasing war-fighting risk. The U.S. en-route system of airbases is critical to operations in Europe and Southwest Asia. U.S. prepositioned weapons and equipment in the European theater facilitate military operations in nearby areas. Air Force aircraft and personnel deployed in Europe allow forces to move more quickly to small-scale contingencies in the area and reduce the airlift and sealift burden on U.S.-based units. As with the Air Force, Army combat and support units stationed in Europe allow forces to move more quickly and at less cost to small-scale contingencies in the area. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-99/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-99.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-99/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-99.pdf GAO-02-99 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-99 Other Written Product GAO-02-99; Military Readiness: Effects of a U.S. Military Presence in Europe on Mobility Requirements; Armed forces abroad Combat readiness Logistics Military airlift operations C-17 Aircraft DOD Mobility Requirements Study Europe F-15 Aircraft Middle East Title 10 Section 118 10 U.S.C. 118 Public Law 106-398