DIRECT FIRE PLANNING

Terms in this set (13)

Principles of Fire Control
• Mass the Effects of Fire
• Destroy the Greatest Threat First
• Avoid Target Overkill
• Employ the Best Weapon for the Target
• Minimize Friendly Exposure
• Prevent Fratricide
• Plan for Extreme Limited Visibility
• Develop Contingencies for Diminished Capabilities
two types of Direct Fire Control Measures
TERRAIN-BASED
THREAT-BASED
TERRAIN-BASED Direct Fire Control Measures
• TARGET REFERENCE POINT (TRP)
• ENGAGEMENT AREA (EA)
• SECTOR OF FIRE
• DIRECTION OF FIRE
• TERRAIN-BASE QUADRANT
• FRIENDLY-BASED QUADRANT
• MAXIMUM ENGAGEMENT LINE (MEL)
• RESTRICTIVE FIRE LINE (RFL)
• FINAL PROTECTIVE LINE (FPL)
THREAT-BASED Direct Fire Control Measures
• RULES OF ENGAGEMENT
• WEAPONS READY POSTURE
• WEAPONS SAFETY POSTURE
• WEAPONS CONTROL STATUS
• ENGAGEMENT PRIORITIES
• ENGAGEMENT TECHNIQUES
• FIRE PATTERNS
• TARGET ARRAY
TARGET REFERENCE POINT
• Recognizable point on the ground that leaders use to orient friendly forces and to focus and control direct fires.
• TRPs are designated at probable enemy locations and along likely avenues of approach. These points can be natural or manmade
• Examples: Hills, Building, burning enemy vehicles, manmade markers
ENGAGEMENT AREA
• An area along an enemy avenue of approach where the commander intends to mass the fires of available weapons to destroy an enemy force.
• Typically, commanders delineate responsibility within the EA by assigning each platoon a sector of fire or direction of fire
SECTOR OF FIRE
• A defined area that must be covered by direct fire.
• Leaders assign sectors of fire to subordinate elements, crew-served weapons, and individual soldiers to ensure coverage of an area of responsibility.
• They also may limit the sector of fire of an element or weapon to prevent accidental engagement of an adjacent unit.
• Consider the number and type of weapons available.
• Means of designating sectors of fire include the following:
- TRPs.
- Clock direction.
- Terrain-based quadrants.
- Friendly-based quadrants.
DIRECTION OF FIRE
• An orientation or point used to assign responsibility for a particular area on the battlefield that must be covered by direct fire
- Closest TRP
- Clock Directions
- Cardinal Directions
- Tracer on target
- IR Laser Pointer
MAXIMUM ENGAGEMENT LINE (MEL)
• Linear depiction of the farthest limit of effective fire for a weapon or unit.
• Slope, vegetation, structures, and other features provide cover and concealment that may prevent the weapon from engaging out to the maximum effective range
• Establishes criteria for trigger lines
• Depicts maximum extent of battle space
RESTRICTIVE FIRE LINE (RFL)
• Linear fire control measure beyond which engagement is prohibited without coordination
• offense, the platoon leader may designate an RFL to prevent a base of fire element from firing into the area where an assaulting element is maneuvering
FINAL PROTECTIVE LINE (FPL)
• Line of fire established where an enemy assault is to be checked by the interlocking fires of all available weapons. The unit reinforces this line with protective obstacles and with final protective fires (FPF) whenever possible.
TERRAIN BASED QUADRANT
• Uses a TRP to designate the center point of the Axes
• In the offense, the commander designates the center of the quadrant using an existing feature or by creating a reference point
• In the defense the quadrants is marked the same way and the EA is divided into sectors
FRIENDLY BASED QUADRANT
• Uses Center point of the formation as the center point of the quadrant.
• Axis run parallel and perpendicular to the general direction of travel
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