The Axiom in the studies of military science is that implementing combined arms will result in atactical victory, in maneuver warfare. But there have been historical examples of when that has not been the case, and we in this profession must learn from these defeats. The intention of this study is to examine if Robert Leonhard’s theory of combined arms can explain the tactical defeats of the German forces during the battle of Alam el Halfa and Operation Citadel.
The conclusion of this study is that the German forces implemented combined arms warfare, but still lost. The German struggled during both cases to fully implement the dilemma principle and the alcyoneus principle. The implication of this result leads to the discussion that even if combined arms warfare is implemented, the enemy doesn’t necessarily suffer the effect as explained by Leonhard in the dilemma principle and the alcyoneus principle.