All wars are costly in lives and treasure Through the ages, this fundamental truth has driven military strategists to search for a quick and inexpensive victory in battle. But, the limits of technology allowed for only so much innovation on land and sea. Then, just as the horrors of war reached their zenith in the trenches of WWI, the airplane promised to take the battle directly to the enemy's most vital targets. Victory, some reasoned, would now go quickly, easily, and with less expense to those who could command the air. But early Airpower results were not all that impressive. Airplanes never achieved the unambiguous, inexpensive or decisive victory its advocates envisioned. Ever since, military men have sought a better understanding of Airpower and how best to use this unique weapon to defeat an enemy.

The method or objective of Strategic Paralysis is to selectively attack or threaten those strategic or national level targets that most directly support the enemy's war-making efforts and will to continue with his current behavior. Strategic Paralysis warfare should result in a change in the enemy's behavior at a lesser cost to both sides as Airpower assets are the primary weapons --not ground troops. Why Airpower? It is the only weapon that can provide the near simultaneous shock to the enemy's central nervous system necessary to induce paralysis. To achieve success Strategic Paralysis requires four key ingredients: 1) Correctly identifying the enemy's National Elements of Value, 2) High technology, 3) An enemy dependent upon a well developed, modern and vulnerable infrastructure, and 4) Aerospace Control. The bulk of this study is devoted to defining this strategy and bettering our understanding of the first ingredient, that of choosing the best targets for attack.