Search And Destroy

By MICHAEL D. LEMONICK

RECONNAISSANCE The U.S. has developed the world's most advanced spy craft for monitoring an elusive foe

Satellites --Orbiting eyes like the Keyhole can cover wide swaths of the country every day

WHAT THEY CAN DO: Spot objects less than a foot across

WHAT THEY CAN'T DO: Can't spot faces, so they're not particularly useful for finding Osama bin Laden

High-Altitude Planes --The Air Force's U-2 uses cameras and radar to photograph smaller areas than a satellite can manage

WHAT THEY CAN DO: Survey an area for hours at a time, day or night, in any weather

WHAT THEY CAN'T DO: The photos from U-2s are not as sharp as a drone's; vulnerable to long-range missiles

Drones --Unmanned craft like the Predator can carry out reconnaissance missions at lower altitudes; prototypes of the Global Hawk, an advanced, higher-flying drone, could also see some action

WHAT THEY CAN DO: Provide real-time photos and videos of small areas of enemy activity

WHAT THEY CAN'T DO: Can't cover a large area quickly or work well in bad weather

ATTACK Once a target is spotted, the U.S. has numerous ways to strike it

Aircraft --AC-130 Spectre and Spooky gunships are flying artillery platforms that give air cover to ground troops

WHAT THEY CAN DO: Lay down punishing fire over a narrow swath of terrain; accurate from an altitude of 10,000 ft.

WHAT THEY CAN'T DO: Can't quickly escape ground or missile fire

Strategic Bombers --The B-52 Stratofortress has a range of 8,800 miles and can carry just about any munition, including nuclear weapons

WHAT THEY CAN DO: Destroy Taliban strongholds, air force, air defenses

WHAT THEY CAN'T DO: Can't avoid causing "collateral damage" to civilians

Helicopters --MH-53J Pave Lows and MH-60K Black Hawks are crammed with sophisticated electronics and navigation systems

WHAT THEY CAN DO: Pave Lows can follow terrain at treetop level, carry commandos 600 miles and evade Stinger missiles

WHAT THEY CAN'T DO: May find it difficult to hover at mountain altitudes

Precision Munitions --Guided by laser or GPS systems, these "smart" bombs and cruise missiles home in on preprogrammed targets

WHAT THEY CAN DO: Hit a building, vehicle or artillery emplacement with high accuracy

WHAT THEY CAN'T DO: Can't strike their target 100% of the time; laser-guided bombs can be defeated by cloud cover

High-Tech Gear --U.S. ground forces dropped into Afghanistan will be supplied with the latest weapons and equipment, including:

High-altitude, low-opening parachutes Sniper guns with laser scopes Explosives and grenades Bulletproof body armor Secure, satellite-linked laptops Night-vision goggles Earphones and throat microphones Lasers for directing aircraft and missiles

SPECIAL OPS Includes Green Berets, Rangers, SEALs and the ultrasecret Delta Force, trained for unconventional missions

SURVEILLANCE: Infiltrate by parachute, dune buggy or on foot to set up listening posts and periscope-equipped subsurface "hidesites" to monitor and relay intelligence on hostile activity

MOUNTAIN OPERATIONS: Scramble over jagged, ice-covered terrain to launch guerrilla-style attacks

CLANDESTINE WARFARE: Carry out small raids, ambushes and sabotage; organize underground resistance networks

SNIPER TEAMS: Lie in wait for targets to emerge; "long-gun" sharpshooters can hit a man from as far away as one-third of a mile

THE TARGET The Taliban forces have less sophisticated weaponry, but they are proven guerrillas, skilled at absorbing setbacks and exploiting the rugged terrain

TROOPS Some 45,000 fighters, many of them conscripts. About 40% are volunteers from other countries

ARMORED VEHICLES Several hundred tanks, armored personnel carriers and amphibious scout cars

AIR FORCE Perhaps 100 planes, mostly aging Soviet leftovers, including fighters, bombers and helicopters

MISSILES Surface-to-air Stingers, SA-7 Grails and Scud-Bs artillery Truck-mounted rocket launchers, antiaircraft guns, howitzers and automatic grenade launchers

With reporting by Andrea Dorfman, Mark Thompson and Douglas Waller