Citation[]
Department of the Army, Information Collection, U.S. Army Field Manual (FM) 3-55 (Apr. 2012) (full-text).
Overview[]
This Field Manual (FM) provides essential and enduring doctrine for Army forces conducting information collection activities. This FM aligns information collection with current Army doctrine. The modular force structure with the brigade combat team as the centerpiece of the deployed force also moves many information collection assets to lower echelons. The latter is a major shift from previous ways of operating.
In this manual, the term information collection is introduced as the Army's replacement for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (also known as ISR). ISR is a joint term, for which the Army revised to meet Army needs. The manual describes the following activities: planning requirements, assessing collection, tasking and direct information collection assets. Also it contains the actions taken by the commanders and staffs in planning, preparing, executing, and assessing information collection activities. As the Army fields new formations and equipment with inherent and organic information collection capabilities, it needs a doctrinal foundation to ensure their proper integration and use to maximize their capabilities.