Theater of Operations


Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Acronyms, Wikipedia.

theater of operations

[′thē·ə·dər əv ‚äp·ə′rā·shənz]
(ordnance)
Portion of a theater of war necessary for military operations, either offensive or defensive, pursuant to an assigned mission, and for the administration incident to such military operation.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Theater of Operations

 

that part of a continent (including coastal waters, inland seas, and air space) or an ocean (including islands, adjoining seas, coastal areas, and air space) within which military operations are conducted. It includes several strategic axes and areas (ocean zones and naval districts).

The nature and extent of a theater of operations are established by the military and political leaders of each state on the basis of the strategic aims of a general war plan and an analysis of political, economic, geographic, and military factors. The extent of a theater of operations includes the territories of the theater country and of the enemy. Continental theaters of operations during World War II (1939–45) ranged in size from 300 to 600 km along the front and from 800 to 1,000 km and more in depth. The role and significance of these areas changed with the changing conditions of the military and political situation.

Of great significance for the operations of troops or naval forces is the preparation of theaters of operations in accordance with a definite plan developed during peace time and perfected in the course of war. Among the basic elements to be considered in the preparation of a theater of operations are the development of communications, the construction of airfields, and the preparation by engineers of the areas where antiaircraft equipment, troops, rear bases and supply stations, control posts, and communications centers may be located.

N. N. FOMIN

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
Mentioned in ?
References in periodicals archive ?
(15) To win in Vietnam and Iraq was the theater of operations, theater, and national objective.
The fourth level of war
The modular structure of the logistic support forces contributes to the assurance of freedom of movement at the level of multinational force HQ, so the decision making structure (CJ4) has the flexibility to solve various demands from the troops, both following a chronological order of registration, and function of operational hierarchy and existing necessities in the theater of operations.
Logistic support requirements in multinational operations
Dulina credits the 135 public affairs staffers stationed in 10 locations throughout the Gulf theater of operations for successful coverage of the war.
Forces Command provides communication support
Brigadier Al-Asiri said that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the theater of North Thunder drill, noting that the arrival of troops to the theater of operations needs to organize time, transport, ports and airports.
Brigadier Al-Asiri: 20 Arab and Islamic Countries Are Participating in North Thunder Drill
It provides sustainers and warfighters with in-transit visibility (ITV) of cargo, equipment, and personnel along lines of communication into and out of the theater of operations.
The movement control battalion in theater: movement control battalions regularly provide mission command for more movement control teams than they are doctrinally capable of leading
Rudden served in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II.
Francis J. Rudden, 86
According to a September 1945 report issued by the provost marshal of the European Theater of Operations, 9,072 general prisoners were confined in DTCs from 1 January 1944 to 31 May 1945; 1,851 of them were eventually restored to duty.
Penal institutions in the European theater of operations
The Port Group CHARLIE RESULTS team, Kuwait Naval Base, Kuwait, Navy Expeditionary Combat Command performed with singular distinction, serving as the vital hinge pin of the logistics process in the Central Command Theater of operations through which a vast majority of equipment and supplies flow to the fighting forces engaged in OIF.
Tenth annual Admiral Stanley R. Arthur Awards for Logistics Excellence
Due to the proximity and credibility of threat, the complexity of the Korean Theater of Operations and the high turnover of U.S.
599th Transportation Group participates in annual UFL exercise
(The majority date from the past seven years, but there are a few works from the late '80s and early '90s.) Painting as Frize conceives of the practice does not have as its ultimate goal the production of objects as much as the perfection (and the testing) of processes: The canvas is thought of not as an end or an objective but as a place; it is, strictly speaking, a theater of operations. If the painting's unfolding proves satisfactory--if it follows its course without encountering an impasse, while retaining a necessary dose of the unexpected and the possibility of leeway from its plotted course--Frize preserves the canvas.
Bernard Frize: Musee D'art Moderne de la Ville de Paris
EVEN before Operation Iraqi Freedom can be declared history, the History Channel's Lee Ermey brought his show "Mail Call" to OIF's theater of operations to show the public the military's mission through Ermey's unique and patriotic lens.
"Mail Call" goes to Iraq

Encyclopedia browser ?
Full browser ?