The OP Herrick Campaign Study. As the British Army withdrew from Helmand after more than ten years of operations in Afghanistan, it took stock of its experiences. To this end, a campaign study was mandated by the commander of Force Development and Training in July 2013. The aim for the Herrick Campaign Study was to consolidate and prioritize the multitudes of tactical lessons from the Afghanistan mission. In addition to this aim, the study set out to capture lessons of enduring relevance for future conflict and force development.1525 Underpinning these objectives were the ideas that the army will conduct counterinsurgency operations in the future and that experiences from Afghanistan had led to conceptual developments that would be useful for future conflict. At the same time, the campaign study’s foreword acknowledged that all experiences from Operation Herrick would be relevant for retention.1526 1525 British Army. Herrick Campaign Study, p. v. 1526 Ibidem, p. iii. A writing team was assembled from the Lessons Exploitation Centre (LXC). As the LXC had organized the Mission Exploitation Symposia, oversaw the DLIMS-database, and had conducted the Post-Operation Interviews with commanders, it was understood to be the repository of experiences from the campaign in the British Army. In addition to these sources, scores of further interviews were conducted.1527 The writing team started its work in September 2013. Thus, the review of the tactical lessons commenced while the mission was still ongoing. The rationale behind this timing was that the experiences were collected while still fresh.1528 The vast amount of data was divided into functional areas and capabilities. The lessons identified and best practices were ‘peer reviewed’ by more than 30 “military judgment panels” to ensure coherence and forward them into the MoD’s learning process for action. Besides input from within the British Army, the Royal Marines and the Royal Air Force contributed to the lessons. In all, over 700 lessons identified were captured and processed.1529 A selection of these lessons were included in the campaign study. The upper echelons of the army and the MoD then vetted the drafts of this document, and additional comments were sought from the commanders of TFH.1530 The Operation Herrick Campaign Study was published in March 2015 by the Land Warfare Centre as an internal document.1531 The resulting document is a vast tome of lessons identified, learned and best practices for a military audience. As a campaign po...
