What Are the Two Major Periods in the Planning Cycles?

The planning process consists of two overlapping major periods that serve distinct purposes. The Initial Planning Cycle begins concurrently with the mobilization of the Source Control organization and ends with the approval of the draft General Plan by the Incident Commander. The Daily Planning Cycle also begins concurrently with the Initial Planning Cycle but continues through to the completion of the project.
Planning Cycles Purposes of the Cycle
Initial Planning Cycle Hold initial incident briefing
  Activate Source Control Team as necessary
  Perform Initial On-Scene Incident Assessment
  Gather archived and onsite data for analysis
  Perform engineering diagnostics to define the blowout problem
  Produce daily work shift Incident Action Plans (IAP) and first draft of the General Plan that describes the activities to be engaged in and resources required to achieve sequential milestones through to the completion of Source Control operations
Daily Planning Cycle Establish daily objectives and response priorities for the next operational period (work shift)
  Develop detailed tactical operations plans to achieve those objectives
  Marshal the manpower, equipment and support services needed to carry out the tactical operations plans
  Prepare IAP's detailing how the tactical operations, including safety procedures, will be carried out during the next work period
  Brief personnel on contents of the IAP
  Review and refine the General Plan, making modifications based on changes in the incident situation or increased understanding of the problem.