Friction and the Fight for Brown Pass

Abstract
Carl Von Clausewitz stated everything in war is very simple, but the simplest thing is difficult. The difficulties accumulate and end by producing a kind of friction that is inconceivable unless one has experienced war. Countless minor incidents - the kind you can never really foresee - combine to lower the general level of performance, so that one always falls short of the intended goal.1 The very essence of war as a clash of opposite wills creates friction Uncertainty, or the fog of war, constitutes one of the most serious sources of friction in war, by making things appear entirely different from what one had expected.2 On 14 February 1997, Task Force (TF); 1-16 Infantry attacked into Brown Pass at the National Training Center of Fort Irwin, California. Personal safety, confusion, fear, and fatigue combines with a hostile physical environment to impact on the effectiveness of both men and machines. After less than four hours of battle, it was clear that friction and uncertainty had dominated the outcome.

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