mout actd program handbook #1 experimental tactics ... - SpecOps

OMEGA TRAINING GROUP, INC.
MOUT ACTD HANDBOOK #1
EXPERIMENTAL TACTICS, TECHNIQUES, AND PROCEDURES
FOR THE INFANTRY RIFLE PLATOON AND SQUAD IN URBAN COMBAT
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• Company strongpoints are prepared for perimeter defense and form the basis
for the battalion defensive position.
• The reserve is located in a separate strongpoint.
• Ambush locations are established in the gaps of the strongpoints, and dummy
strongpoints are constructed to deceive the attacker.
• Positions for securing and defending the entrances to and exits from
underground structures and routes are established.
• Security positions are prepared forward of first echelon defensive positions.
• A motorized/mechanized rifle company may defend several buildings with
mutually supporting fires or use a single large building as part of a larger
defensive system.
• Each platoon defends one or two buildings or defends one or two floors of a
single building.
b. Other Types of Forces. Forces present in many underdeveloped countries
are neither what has come to be expected as a modernized threat nor do they present a
classical insurgency type of situation. Some forces may be semi-skilled light infantry as
might be found in several African countries which have recently undergone civil wars
such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire). These troops are
normally poorly trained, equipped, and motivated. Using the case of the Congo as an
example, 40% of the populace comes from the cities, which are the locations of most of
the recent conflicts. These forces should not be underestimated. They know the terrain
and may have the support of the population. Other types of forces may include local
warlords’ personal armies, such as found in Somalia. Another type of force may include
semi-organized groups of thugs loosely under the control of an individual, such as found
in Haiti or in the form of the “Dignity Battalions” in Panama. A final source of
organized force may be the police force or gendarmerie. In some countries, the
gendarmerie is a more effective fighting force than the army.
c. Unconventional Forces. Enemy analysis is similar to that for Low Intensity
Conflict (LIC) during urban counterinsurgency, counterguerrilla, and counterterrorist
operations. (See FMs 34-130 and 7-98 for details of intelligence preparation of the
battlefield (IPB) in counterinsurgency operations.)
d. Analyzing Enemy Movement Capabilities. In the defense, if the attacker
is mostly infantry, the greatest danger is allowing him to gain a foothold. If the attacker
is mostly armored forces or mounted motorized/mechanized infantry, the greatest danger
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VERSION 7, 1 APRIL 1999