FM 100-5 Operations - Survival Ebooks Military Manuals Survival ...

WWW.SURVIVALEBOOKS.COMFM 100-5battle when the defender should take steps to uncoverenemy vulnerabilities and attack and destroy them ifpossible. Whatever the immediate purpose, the greaterintent of the defense is to force the attack to culminate,to gain the initiative for friendly forces, and tocreate the opportunity to shift to the offensive.CHARACTERISTICS OFDEFENSIVE OPERATIONSPrepared positions, security, disruption, mass andconcentration, and flexibility characterize defensiveoperations.PREPARATIONThe defender arrives in the battle area before theattacker, making the most thorough preparations thattime allows. In the early stages of battle, the defendercapitalizes on the advantage of fighting from preparedpositions of his selection. Defense always includes apoint of main effort. Preparations involve positioningforces in depth, improving terrain to favor the defender,wargaming plans, organizing the force for movementand support, rehearsing, and taking measures to protectthe force, such as mounting reconnaissance andsurveillance operations forward of the defended area.Mobilizing reserves and auxiliary forces, strengtheningair and missile defenses or critical areas, conductingsecurity operations to deny the enemy effectivereconnaissance, and preparing deceptions to misleadthe enemy are equally important tasks. Duringthe course of the battle, the defender looks for opportunitiesto wrest the initiative from the attacker.He prepares for this by designating counterattackforces and rehearsing counterattack plans for the eventualtransition to the offense. Cunning and guile arepart of defensive preparations in order to keep the enemyoff balance and make him begin early to doubthis ability to continue the attack.SECURITYDefending forces provide security. Since a forcedefends to conserve combat power for use elsewhere,or at a later time, commanders must provide protectionof their force. They do this principally throughdeception and physical means in the defended area.Defending units want to deceive the enemy as to theirstrengths and weaknesses. Normally a security areais designated with a covering force. The purpose ofthese measures at all tactical echelons is to coordinateand synchronize the defense, to provide early warning,and to begin disrupting the integrity of the enemyattack early and continuously.DISRUPTIONThe defender disrupts the attacker’s tempo andsynchronization by countering his initiative and preventinghim from massing overwhelming combatpower. Defending commanders also use disruption toattack the enemy’s will to continue. They do this bydefeating or misleading enemy reconnaissance forces,separating the enemy’s forces, isolating his units, andbreaking up his formations so that they cannot fight aspart of an integrated whole. The defender interruptsthe attacker’s fire support, logistics support, and C2.He deceives the enemy as to his true dispositions andintentions, unravels the coordination of the enemy’ssupporting arms, and breaks the tempo of the offensiveoperations. The attacker is never allowed to getset. He is hit with spoiling attacks before he can focushis combat power and is counterattacked before he canconsolidate any gains.MASS AND CONCENTRATIONThe defender seeks to mass the effects of overwhelmingcombat power where he chooses and shiftsthat mass repeatedly in accordance with his point ofmain effort. To obtain an advantage at decisive points,the defender economizes and takes risks in some areas;retains and, when necessary, reconstitutes a reserve;and maneuvers to gain local superiority at thepoint of decision. The defender may have to surrendersome ground to gain the time necessary to concentratehis forces.The defender normally masses effects and concentratesforces repeatedly during battle. He does soswiftly, since periods that allow them to develop superiorcombat power will be brief. Commanders acceptrisks in some areas to concentrate forces for decisiveaction elsewhere. Obstacles, security forces, andfires can assist in reducing these risks. Since concentrationof the force increases the threat of large lossesfrom weapons of mass destruction, commanders usedeception and concealment to hide this vulnerabilityfrom the enemy. They also protect their forces withstrong air and missile defenses to decrease the threatfrom weapons of mass destruction.9-1