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Twelve O’clock High Review
“Hard luck.” This is the term used to describe the United States Air Force 918 Bomb Squad during World War II. At a critical time in the war against the German Luftwaffe, the airmen are subjected to a new strategy dubbed “daylight precision bombing.” As a result, the bomb squad’s accuracy increases, as well as, their casualty rate. Morale of the 918 is continually sinking along with their performance. At this challenging time, command-orders demand “maximum effort” from the squads. Brigadier General Frank Savage is tasked with leading the 918 bomb squad to comply with this order. Short on supplies, equipment, and troop morale, he must provide the leadership required to reach this highest attainable level of performance.
General Savage arrives at the base with a commitment and determination to revitalize the 918 bomb squad. Armed with only a vision, he sets out to provide the crew with something to be proud of and take ownership in. He realizes the crew needs a common goal, a reason to push forward and perform at their very best. In other words, they must perform as a team. General Savage brings a mix of leadership and management to the base in order to accomplish this mission.
The 918 is in bad need of the General’s transformative style of leadership to shape and elevate the motives and goals of the troops. His primary intention is to have leadership at all levels, and this can only be accomplished through empowerment. By enhancing the troops’ competence and confidence in their abilities, listening to their ideas and acting upon them, by involving them in important decision making, and by acknowledging and giving credit for their contributions, the General will enable the troops to take ownership of and responsibility for their own success. He knows that troops who feel weak, incompetent, and insignificant will consistently underperform. Therefore, the General must increase their sense of self-confidence, self-determination, and personal effectiveness to make them more powerful and enhance their possibility of success. General Savage employed several leadership principles to empower his squad:
• Provides choice
At General Savage’s first aircrew briefing, he gave everyone the choice to stay in the 918 or to file transfer papers. Unanimously the crew filed transfer papers, but ultimately they all decided to stay after gaining confidence in the General as their leader.
• Fosters accountability
After the second mission under General Savage’s lead, an aircrew briefing is held where both the good and bad points of the mission are discussed.
The mission command philosophy helps commanders counter the uncertainty of operations by reducing the amount of certainty needed to act. Commanders can build teams and achieve their final goals through adapting the six principles of mission command to warfighting situation. I analyzed and compared the performance of General Sherman and General Hampton in four of six mission command principles.
Despite the meticulous planning for OPLAN 90-2, there were a number of external factors that disrupted overall timeline and sequence of events. The plan was to assault and seize the Omar Torrijos International Airport after the last commercial passenger flight was scheduled to arrive at 2300. However, the flights arrival was delayed by two hours. The plan was to give enough time for the passengers to get their luggage and clear the airport prior to the assault. Weather conditions also became an issue for the departing forces. Soldiers traveling by convoy from Fort Ord to Travis Air Force Base had to combat a thick fog, coupled with Christmas traffic making the 150-mile trip very difficult. Upon arrival to the base, not all of the aircraft were configured the same, which was not surprising because most of the aircraft were pulled from different bases all over the nation of short notice. Equipment had to be repacked and the aircraft had to be reconfigured along with amending the flight manifests to fit all of the troops and equipment. Due to inclement weather at Fort Bragg, the Paratroopers arrival was also postponed. These delays were not taken into account during the planning period, which ultimately delayed departure.
It was mid-afternoon on October 3, 1993. There were approximately 160 men eagerly awaiting the signal to proceed. Matt Eversmann sat waiting in Super Six Seven, a Black Hawk helicopter. He noticed that things were being done differently from the other setups, which had been false. This time they were packing more ammo and the commander had come out to see them off.
The 918th Bomber group is radically transformed from being a "hard luck" group under Colonel Davenport to a successful group with pride and self confidence under Brigadier. Savage. The reasons for the dramatic turn around lie clearly in the differences in the leader ship style between the two men.
Black Hearts is a great example of the reality on how severe bad leadership skills can ripple throughout a unit and impact its overall mission. This book serves as a guide for future leaders of America and will set the examples of what not to do in leadership positions. The lessons we can take from these soldiers can help us as potential leaders to become more competent and effective. The fact that this book focused on the hardships, poor decisions and sound judgment of the soldiers it helped emphasize on what was not the best choice of action and leaves a moment for you as the audience to think how you would of done it better. So right or wrong there was a lesson to be learned and the book did a good job including the reader. This book puts you in the shoes of a small group of soldiers from the 502nd Infantry Regiment and gives you an up close and personal take on the experience of the soldiers, from the bottom of the the ranks all the way up to the commander. 502nd Bravo Company 1st platoon deployed in the fall of 2005 into one of the most dangerous battle zones in Iraq known as the “Triangle of Death”. Thrown into the heartland of a growing insurgency, with undefined goals and a shortage of manpower, Bravo Company began piling up casualties at an alarming rate. They suffered many losses, as well as mental anguish. Because of the long and tragic deployment, a collapse in leadership began to unfold causing one of the most tragic, brutal, and infamous deployments in U.S Army history. There were many reasons that caused the deconstruction of leadership, and eventually, the actions of the soldiers accompanied by the lack of control, lead to the rape and murder of an innocent Iraqi girl and her family. This is a story about character...
 The purpose of this paper is to identify and contrast the different styles of leadership exhibited by two characters found in the 1949 movie Twelve O’Clock High starring Gregory Peck as General Savage, Army Air Forces general. Based on a true story, Twelve O’Clock High is a inspirational account of the highly dangerous precision daylight bombing missions carried out by US Army Air Force’s 918th Bomber Group in England during the last part of World War II. In the beginning of the movie the squadron is commanded by general Davenport. It is very clear that General Davenport’s main concern is the wellbeing of his men. He obviously had developed close interpersonal relationships. The men of the squadron were completely devoted towards Davenport and they trusted any decision that he would make. General Davenport’s affection for his men comes to interfere with his ability to lead them. The squadron suffers heavy losses to planes and heavier losses to soldiers. One instance that clearly demonstrates Davenport’s incapability to uphold his responsibilities as the leader is when he jeopardizes the well being of the entire squadron by ignoring protocol and flying out of formation in the attempt to save one plane. When it becomes apparent to Davenport’s superiors that his emotional feelings have become an obstacle to his effectively leading the squadron they relieve him. General Savage who is ordered to take over the underachieving bomber group experiencing heavy losses because of poor technique and lack of focus. Savage takes a kind of tough love approach, holding his men to the highest standards. Savage makes the point that the ultimate objection of the squadron is to successfully complete the assigned missions. Throughout the movie Savage constantly makes it absolutely clear to the squadron that no one individual’s wellbeing will be placed ahead of the entire team and the success of the team. Initially the changing of the preceding General dispirits the squadron. They felt that General Savage was uncompassionate considering the men as nothing more then numbers that were dispensable at his convenience. After several missions that were marked by a remarkable turnaround in success the man eventually come...
Two weeks earlier in the darkness of an early April morning, I stand surrounded by close to three hundred other soldiers, filled with excitement and uncertainty. The air is heavy with the promise of another scorching day with the humidity reaching hundred percent. This day is called Zero Day. This is the day that determines which of the close to three hundred potential candidates get to make up the next class of two hundred Air Assault Students. The day begins early, 0330 to be exact, and with a lot of yelling. Immediately we are instructed to form one mass formation, the yelling continues. The Air Assault Sergeants, otherwise know as Black-shirts because of their distinctive uniform, take command. This is their yard and they make sure each and every one of us understands that. One by one soldiers are called out of ranks to receive their roster number. From this point on I am no longer be known as SGT Nealand, now I am Roster Number 442 or simply 442.
An intriguing plot is the first thing people look for in a movie. War is a complicated subject so in a film about war, while it is important for the plot to be interesting, it is even more important that it is sensible and flows smoothly. This allows the audience to be entertained and keeps them from getting lost in too many complicated details. The Hurt Locker is the story of three men who are part of a United States Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (E.O.D.) team stationed in Baghdad in 2004. Sergeant First Class William James is a daring specialist who knows everything there is to know about bombs, inside and out. He begins his rotation with Bravo Company after the former team leader is killed while attempting to disarm a roadside bomb. Bravo Company has just 38 days left on rotation and since James has arrived, those days are fraught with tension. James d...
General Pritchard transfers Colonel Keith Davenport, the current commander of the 918th, to Bomber Command because of his resentment of this strategy. Now that the 918th now lacks a commander, General Frank Savage assumes command. The rapid growth in casualties and dissent towards General Savage demoralize the flight crews, which causes the pilots to request transfer to a different squadron. Realizing that he caused the transfer requests to a degree, General Savage asks Adjutant Major Harvey Stovall for assistance. With Major Stovall's assistance, General Savage is able to increase the time he spends with his crew and, therefore, increase morale. The 918th eventually gains a level of morale high enough to withdraw their transfer requests and execute a mission without General Savage's
The purpose of this memorandum is to outline my view point on leadership. As a Drill Sergeant, it is my responsibility to transform civilians into well discipline, physically fit, and competent scouts. I am entrusted to uphold the Army standards, live the Army Values and Warrior Ethos, and instill Esprit de corps.
Captain Aubrey exhibits and demonstrates leadership characteristics that inspire his crew to be the best that they can be. One of the most important leadership traits that Captain Jack has is a single-minded focus on his purpose. All of his decisions are held up against the g...
Band of Brothers is a fascinating book that captures moments lived by soldiers during World War II. It specifically relates to the History of a small unit of paratroopers known as Easy Company, 506 Regiment, 101st Airborne. It is a story that follows the company from its inception to the capture of Hitler’s nest. It begins with the training of these soldiers at Camp Toccoa, Georgia. The 140 members of easy company who were young men from different social levels were physically and mentally trained. This particular company had an extremely harsh training, but many believe it is because of this training that they were considered as one of the best rifle companies in the army.
...d me with our staff and Soldiers we have been given the opportunity to lead. The time and effort spent will be well worth it. Possessing a shared understanding of the operational environment will aid in our planning process when conducting operations throughout our theater of operation. In every operation we execute we know that we will accept prudent risks, identification and mitigation of those risks will determine our ability to accomplish our mission. Incorporating the principles of mission command by building cohesive teams through mutual trust, fostering an environment of shared understanding, and accepting prudent risk will make me an effective adviser to the commander, aid the staff during the operations process, and provide an example for Soldiers to emulate. My involvement in all aspects of mission command is critical to the success of our organization.
As an officer in the United States Army, it has been imperative for me to understand every facet of leadership and why it remains important to be an effective leader. During this course, I have learned some valuable lessons about myself as a leader and how I can improve on my leadership ability in the future. The journal entries along with the understanding of available leadership theories have been an integral part of my learning during this course. For all of the journals and assessments that I completed, I feel it has given me a good understanding of my current leadership status and my future potential as a leader. All of the specific assessments looked at several areas in regards to leadership; these assessments covered several separate focus areas and identified my overall strengths and weaknesses as a leader. Over the course of this paper I will briefly discuss each one of these assessments and journal entries as they pertained to me and my leadership.
Self-disciplined people are masters of their impulses. This mastery comes from the habit of doing the right thing. Self-discipline allows Army leaders to do the right thing regardless of the consequences for them or their subordinates. Under the extreme stress of combat, you and your team might be cut off and alone, fearing for your lives, and having to act without guidance or knowledge of what’s going on around you. Still, you—the leader—must think clearly and act reasonably. Self-discipline is the key to this kind of behavior.