Commander's have perennially used light infantry forces during the initial stages of strategic, operational, and tactical scenarios to quickly insert a credible combat force into the applicable area of operations. With the growing complexity of the threat spectrum, it is difficult for these units to maintain proficiency in the multitude of environments in which they may operate. The purpose of this dictum is to propose an organizational structure and doctrinally based tactics for the Force 21 Light Infantry unit. It is the author's contention that Light Infantry units, exploiting the advantages of highly dispersed formations, will emerge as an effective and lethal force of the 21st Century. Following several simple concepts that have been discussed and analyzed in the last 100 years, these forces will become the flagships of the US Army. They will emerge as the critical arm in mid and high intensity, armored conflicts. In addition, they will retain their ability to operate skillfully in lower intensity conflicts and operations other than war.

ADA 324374 Approved for public release; Distribution is unlimited. The opinions and conclusions expressed herein are those of the student-authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency. (References to these studies should include the foregoing statement.)