What is the first step in COA development focused on?

The first step in Course of Action (COA) development primarily focuses on analyzing relative combat power. This step is crucial because it allows military planners to understand the strengths and weaknesses of both their own forces and those of the enemy. By evaluating relative combat power, planners can determine the potential effectiveness of various strategies in the context of the current mission.

Understanding the combat power dynamics helps in identifying opportunities for tactical advantages and assessing how different forces can be employed most effectively against an adversary. This analysis provides a foundation for developing feasible and effective courses of action that can capitalize on the unit's strengths while mitigating vulnerabilities, setting the stage for subsequent planning steps that might involve logistics assessment, enemy mapping, or success evaluation.