Hello Army.ca
This is my first time posting here. I'm curious about a couple of minor things I've seen on video and thought this would be the right place to ask.
First, how important is spacing between individuals within a squad on patrol when contact is expected? I've heard 10m between men is a desirable distance to maintain but in most media I see squads significantly more bunched up than that. 20m for an entire squad seems to be more close to the norm. Is this accurate or am I getting the wrong impression? I guessed that maybe Taliban/AQ indirect support was virtually non-existent, perhaps, and that is why spacing hasn't been stressed as much. Does spacing play a significant role versus small arms or mostly just indirect high explosives?
Secondly, it seems like engagements are taking place outside 200m most of the time. Does the enemy in Afghanistan avoid closer range ambushes? They don't seem to be very effective fighters because their chosen engagement ranges are outside the effective range of the AK47. Is this for any specific reason I might be missing?
Thanks very much for any help.
This is my first time posting here. I'm curious about a couple of minor things I've seen on video and thought this would be the right place to ask.
First, how important is spacing between individuals within a squad on patrol when contact is expected? I've heard 10m between men is a desirable distance to maintain but in most media I see squads significantly more bunched up than that. 20m for an entire squad seems to be more close to the norm. Is this accurate or am I getting the wrong impression? I guessed that maybe Taliban/AQ indirect support was virtually non-existent, perhaps, and that is why spacing hasn't been stressed as much. Does spacing play a significant role versus small arms or mostly just indirect high explosives?
Secondly, it seems like engagements are taking place outside 200m most of the time. Does the enemy in Afghanistan avoid closer range ambushes? They don't seem to be very effective fighters because their chosen engagement ranges are outside the effective range of the AK47. Is this for any specific reason I might be missing?
Thanks very much for any help.