Section Battle Drills

The section hasty attack may take place from the line of march (a meeting engagement) or as part of a contact when the lead section may be required to mount a hasty attack to overcome a pocket of resistance or determine the strength of the enemy. There are 6 section battle drills:

f. Regroup.

e. The attack.

d. Suppressing the enemy.

c. Locating the enemy.

b. Reaction to effective enemy fire.

a. Preparation.

Section Battle Drill 6 — Regrouping

It should be stressed that during the fight through the completion of the mission is critical. Casualties are therefore left until the whole position is cleared.

Regrouping will only take place when the section can assault no further due to enemy resistance, casualties, lack of ammunition or the platoon commander’s mission being achieved. Regrouping is not to take place as an automatic drill once an objective is taken; the section commander is to continue the assault in line with his platoon commander’s intent. When regrouping becomes necessary the following actions should happen:

d. In principle the section commander is responsible for the tactical disposition of the section (arcs, positions, etc), whilst the 2IC deals with administrative reorganisation (ammunition, casualties, etc).

c. Rifleman should:

(3) Recharge all magazines.

(2) Check ammunition and grenades.

(1) Check weapons and equipment.

b. The fire support team will:

(2) Check the weapons and redistribute ammunition.

(1) Rejoin the assault fire team as quickly as possible (unless otherwise ordered) once the section has gone firm on the objective. Often the section commander will give a pre-arranged signal for the fire support team to close up if they have not done so automatically.

a. The section commander will:

(6) If necessary check with the platoon commander and confirm his future intentions.

(5) Ensure that prisoners of war (CPers) and captured equipment are sent to platoon HQ.

(4) Supervise digging of trenches.

(3) Arrange for redistribution of ammunition.

(2) Check on casualties and ammunition, then report details to the platoon sergeant.

(1) Allot arcs and fire tasks to each rifleman paying particular attention to key weapon systems.

Section Battle Drill 5 — The Attack

Exploitation.

As soon as the objective is taken the section commander should immediately seek ways to exploit his success either by continuing the assault or by providing fire support for other attacks. The tempo of the attack must be sustained. A limit of exploitation should only be given if there is a danger of the section running into another assault; it should never be given as a routine control measure. It is likely, therefore, to be allocated on the ground by the platoon commander to prevent a friendly fire incident. Rapid and accurate passage of information will be essential to successful exploitation.

Fighting Through.

d. During the fight through the section commander must continually reestimate the situation and issue orders to reflect the changing battle.

c. The fire support team must be prepared at this stage to prevent enemy interference from the flanks or beyond the objective. It must also be ready to move forward automatically as soon as the assault fire team is established on the objective.

b. As individual enemy positions are assaulted, fire support must be provided. The assaulting troops must be aware of threats to their flanks and be prepared to go firm to provide fire support to other assaulting troops who can clear these threats. Local smoke must be available and the use of NLAW should be considered.

a. When the assault team arrives on the objective it should fight through using F & M. The section commander will need to reassess the situation and issue further snap orders before assaulting depth positions.

The Assault.

F & M will be used to move the section from the area where contact is made onto the objective which at section level is likely to be a single trench, sniper or bunker. Although all movement in the open must be covered by fire and must be carried out as quickly as possible to conserve ammunition, casualties should not be risked needlessly. Attention is drawn to the trench clearing drills described in Chapter 6.

b. Fire Team and section F & M.

The method of movement employed by the fire team and section in the assault will depend on the ground, the section strength and the nature of the enemy resistance. The method chosen will be a key decision for the section commander to take. There are three methods:

(3) Method 3. With an assault team and a fire support team.

Assuming balanced fire teams, the tactics used by the assault and fire support teams in Method 3 can be further developed as follows:

(b) Fire Support Team.

As the assault closes, the fire support team should fire at the objective for as long as possible before switching its fire onto other enemy positions. The section 2IC must be alert to deal with any previously unseen enemy positions which may be concentrating its fire onto the assault troops and to call for indirect fire. indirect fire.

(a) Assault Team.

The assault fire team could either assault as an entity or it can break down into pairs. In certain circumstances, such as an assault on a bunker loophole, it may be appropriate for one pair to provide local fire support for the other. The fire support pair is then known as the ‘Point of Fire’. The best weapon to provide this suppression is the LMG, maximising its sustained fire capability and suitability to short range engagements. Care must be taken however with ammunition conservation.

Method 3 is suitable for assaulting an objective which has not been fully suppressed and the section needs to gain its own freedom of manoeuvre.

In Method 3 groups can be based on fire teams or weapons, i.e., either two balanced fire teams or an assault group of section commander, UGL Gunner, Rifleman and two LSW gunners supported by a fire support group of the 2IC (UGL) and 2 LMG gunners. While the fire support team commanded by the section 2IC suppresses the objective the other group will assault. The ground, flanking enemy positions and other friendly force activity are likely to limit severely the angle of attack between the fire support team and the assault team. Certain objectives, such as a bunker with loopholes only facing the front, may dictate the angle of fire support. Command and control between the section commander and his fire support may be difficult and the provision of a fire support team reduces the section manpower immediately available for close combat.

(2) Method 2. As two separate fire teams with F & M either as teams or pairs.

Method 2 has most of the advantages of Method 1 but allows the section commander to create a fire support team more easily if one is needed. It is, therefore, more balanced. This method provides maximum flexibility and is suitable for assaulting a stronger enemy position which is likely to have some depth.

(1) Method 1. As a complete section with F & M in pairs.

This method is the simplest allowing the section to close rapidly with the enemy and deliver the full manpower of the section simultaneously onto the objective. Control is easier for the section commander. However, as the complete section is involved in assaulting it is more vulnerable to fire from other positions. This method will, therefore, depend on the enemy being effectively suppressed from other sources and is best suited for use against an enemy with little depth to his position.

a. Pairs F & M.

The movement of pairs in the assault must be done in the following way: while his partner suppresses their objective with fire, the soldier crawls or rolls out of his old fire position, gets up and zigzags forward for 5–10 metres to his next fire position. Only when he is there and firing should his partner move. When fighting through a heavily defended position all movement from fire position to fire position is likely to be at the crawl.

Attack Briefs. Attack briefs should be as concise as possible and should as a minimum consist of the following:

d. “Any Questions? — Move now”.

c. Fire Team Tasks — “C assault, assault team is…./ Point of fire is…. D fire sp”.

b. Concept of Operations — “section left/right flanking breaking down into assault and point of fire pair”. Left or right flanking merely indicates which side of the fire support team the assault fire team is to work.

a. Section Mission — “Destroy enemy position at GR 123 456”.

Section Battle Drill 4 — Suppressing the Enemy

Although the section commander will use the section’s organic weapons to suppress the enemy, he may also be able to call on or make use of suppressive fire from artillery, mortars and direct fire weapons such as tanks, and medium and heavy machine guns. However, this additional fire support will more commonly be employed to support a platoon or company attack. In such circumstances it may still be necessary for the section assaulting an individual position to provide suppressive fire from its own organic weapons.

While suppressing the enemy the section commander must do his estimate. This is an extremely rapid and simple process and should follow the standard Seven Questions format, albeit in an abbreviated form. In the vast majority of tactical circumstances the section will not be mounting its own independent attack but will be forming an element of an attack mounted by a platoon-size or larger operation (a section attacking on its own is likely to be successful only against an isolated pocket of enemy, such as an OP, equipped solely with small arms). The estimate will, therefore, concentrate on how best use can be made of the ground over which the section will assault and the method for that assault (see Section Battle Drill 5). While the section commander is gathering his thoughts, his 2IC must be prepared to take on all aspects of the section’s fight.

As soon as the section commander has identified the enemy position of greatest threat to the section, he must give a fire control order to bring concentrated fire to bear onto that position. The aim of this fire is to suppress the enemy and thereby regain initiative prior to mounting an attack at either section, platoon or company level. Suppressive fire will also provide cover for withdrawal of casualties, movement off exposed ground or to better fire positions and regrouping. The immediate use of local smoke should be considered to reduce the effectiveness of the enemy’s fire. If fire has been opened by the section, the section commander must regain control by shouting “Stop!” before he gives his fire control order. This will allow him to allocate tasks to fire teams.

Section Battle Drill 3 — Locating the Enemy

Target Indication.

Any member of the section can do this, ideally using tracer or any other appropriate means.

Failure to locate the enemy may prevent the section from moving without suffering heavy casualties. It could lead rapidly to loss of initiative by the section and the halting of the platoon advance. There are three stages to this drill:

c. Movement.

If there is still no reaction by the enemy, as a last resort the section commander should instruct two men or a fire team to get up and double a short distance to different cover. He might do this again if no fire is drawn the first time; a man getting up and dashing ten metres is a very hard target to hit. If there is still no enemy reaction, the section can be deemed to be out of contact, so the section commander must consider continuing the advance cautiously, with a fire team in position to provide covering fire.

b. Fire.

The section commander should give a fire control order to two riflemen to fire shots into likely cover. The rest of the section should keep a careful watch on their arcs of observation. If there is no answering fire, the section commander should try some other likely target.

a. Observation.

Look in the area from which the thump came. The time between the crack and the thump gives a clue to the range, each second representing 600 metres. Look for movement, smoke, radio antennas or anything unusual. If nothing is seen after thirty seconds or so, it is unlikely that the enemy will be located by observation.

Section Battle Drill 2 — Reaction to Effective Enemy Fire

The initial drill, therefore, is: Return fire – take cover – return appropriate fire. It is recognised that the initial return of fire will be largely inaccurate, however, it assists with locating the enemy and will disrupt enemy fire. Even after this individual drill has been completed it may be necessary for the section commander to organise further extraction of his section from the killing area under the cover of smoke and F & M, especially if casualties have been taken.

They should move to the nearest cover then every man in the section should observe and return fire, with tracer if appropriate to indicate the enemy’s position. If the enemy is not seen, the third battle drill to locate the enemy should be used. It is important to note that if the enemy is not located fire should still be put down in his general direction. No movement of troops should take place without covering fire unless it is in dead ground to the enemy.

The reaction to effective enemy fire must be for the whole section to remove itself from the killing area immediately.

Sections must be trained to continue the advance in spite of the noise of fire directed at someone else and regardless of stray rounds near them. Effective enemy fire is fire which is causing, or would cause significant casualties if the section continued on its course.

Section Battle Drill 1 — Preparation

Reference Points and Anticipatory Orders.

During the advance to contact, the section commander will plan and give his anticipatory orders:

b. Reference points for fire control orders. Two or three should be picked out. These must be given when a section is firm on a bound, not while it is moving.

a. Positions giving cover in the event of effective enemy fire; e.g., “If we come under fire, Charlie take cover in scrub, Delta line that bank.”

Section Commander’s Orders.

The section will number-off before orders are given. The section commander’s orders will usually be given in an assembly area. It is essential that the section commander understands the company and platoon concept of operations, however at platoon and section level sometimes complex schemes of manoeuvre will be replaced by simple descriptions of how the operation will be conducted.

Preparation for Battle. Preparation for battle will take place prior to the start of the advance to contact. Section commanders must ensure:

d. That the functional checks are carried out on all radios.

c. That ammunition is clean and magazines and grenades are properly distributed. Flank men in open country should have smoke grenades, depending on the direction of the wind.

Section Battle Drills