Interesting report from Camp Victory

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11-12-2006
Culpeper

Interesting report from Camp Victory

I found this information from someone posting from Camp Victory on a Yahoo email list.

Quote:

Just a couple of comments... the troops are unhappy because they want to stay and finish the mission and it looks like they may not be able to do that. An update on equipment: As I have said before, every vehicle has been armored since
before I got here this time (Dec 05), and now we're seeing some super improvements...

In addition, the first "Land Warrior" unit is arriving. Land Warrior is a "system of systems" that provide real-time networking (including video) of soldiers, displays, data, and more. This is the next step in getting to "Future Force Warrior" which is only a few years away. C-RAM (Counter Rocket, Artillery, Mortar) is finally arriving...

A new type of 2.75" FFAR (rocket) launches on the incoming round(s) and destroys them in flight...

Bottom line, the three casualty producing terrorist tools are all being addressed: Indirect Fire by C-RAM, IED's by the new emitters, and Close Combat by Land Warrior systems. (Interesting note on car bombs. It appears that suicide bombers in cars are no longer going to Allah alone. They were starting to lose their nerve, so now they go out in groups of four so that peer pressure can be used to bolster their resolve. For what its worth...)
11-12-2006
979797

Besides the obvious OPSEC concerns of the post, I will simply address the IED issue.

The insurgents have always stayed one step ahead of us on the issue. While it's not a secret any longer that we employ ECM to interrupt IED's, there are plenty of ways around it and it's never very long before insurgents find that.

I also continue to be disturbed at the Army's "defensive" mindset. It's always about armor and countermeasures. What ever happened to good ol' offensive know-how? Why not emplace sniper teams covertly and let them sit on MSR's for several days with ROE's that allow them to prosecute any targets after curfew. During daylight, they would be allowed to prosecute targets that would, say, be fiddling around the sides of the road. Coupled with an effective PSYOP campaign to promote civilian non-interference and exploit the deaths of IED-emplacement teams, this could be very effective in mitigating the IED threat.
11-12-2006
slapout9

Thinking like a cop

9797, I can sure tell you are in in law enforcement. I wrote long ago that they should be using plain clothes surveillance details and sting operations to help counter threats like this. Some of the old masters of COIN used techniques like this long ago but have been forgotten. It is a different mindset that needs to be transferred to the military. Jedburgh our master Intell man found some RAND reports of old COIN techniques where they even used Husband and Wife plain clothes details to avoid detection. The reports are all online if you get a chance read them, these guys were tough and new how to win.
11-12-2006
979797

Yes, I'm a cop, but it has nothing to do with that. To me, it's just plain, ol' common sense coupled with a "we REALLY want to win" mentality. This seems so absent in the hierarchy of the military today. Is it so political to wear stars that you really have to have a frontal lobotomy or sell your soul to survive in the world of flag/general officers??!!
11-13-2006
Blackfoot6

Zip Code Offensive Mindset

I have to re-emphasize the point made above. While deployed to Iraq, we reduced the footprint on THE major MSR from a Company reinforced to a Platoon reinforced supported by sniper operations. We accomplished this through improved engineering, small unit cordon and knock operations, raids, extended patrols and establishing company-sized FOBs. HUMINT was the key, and it could not be collected while riding in a vehicle or from a giant FOB with layers of entry control and security. By disrupting the OODALOOP cycle of the enemy, we were able to drive the tempo. The end result was the ability to host elections in January of 2005 in area where none were planned due to the violence. The focus is always on the enemy. Counter-IED, counter-mortar/rocket patrols and a long list of other "presence" missions reduce combat power that should be dedicated to disrupting the enemy in his home and forcing him to move, expose himself, his finances and communications.

As for the detainee catch and release program, that's another issue.

I enjoy this site immensely. Maintain the dialogue. Thx.
11-13-2006
Steve Blair

Quote:

Originally Posted by 979797

Yes, I'm a cop, but it has nothing to do with that. To me, it's just plain, ol' common sense coupled with a "we REALLY want to win" mentality. This seems so absent in the hierarchy of the military today. Is it so political to wear stars that you really have to have a frontal lobotomy or sell your soul to survive in the world of flag/general officers??!!

Agreed. The use of sniper teams is so obvious it shouldn't have to be mentioned, but since it's not a high-tech item it may have slid off the PowerPoint briefs. They are the ultimate precision munition, and have the ability to discriminate between targets in real time without any delay (provided they have proper ROE to work with, that is). Combine that with good intel (to include the sting-type operations slapout9 mentioned) and you have a good set of basic offensive measures that also build your intel picture.