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A rifle platoon sergeant is supposed to be a SSgt (E6). Specialty platoons (weapons, mortars, snipers, etc) are supposed to be GySgt (E7). Often may be a rank lower due to shortages.



Based...

A modern US Army "sergeant" is not the same thing as the "sergeants" I've seen in the Commonwealth armies I'm familiar with. I have no idea where the Rhodesian Army fits into the spectrum, but it...

I know what the rules say, or at least what they said during a couple of different rotations.

I was answering Ken, as a field grade (albeit not a senior one).

Training units one way, and...

I don't think I qualify as a senior field grade, but it doesn't make sense to me. I know a couple of people that had LRS-D or Pathfinder commands in OEF- I'll have to ask them their thoughts on...

Regarding my first point- If the principles are truly principles, then 100% success must show their application in some form. The specific application may be different based on the circumstances,...

Anytime I get an "attaboy" from Ken, it makes me feel good:D

Frankly, in most places, the capabilities of the Taliban and other associated militants (HIG, Haqqani network, etc.) against a well-established fixed-site defense are negligible. Witness exactly...

The USMC platoon has never had 7.62mm MGs, AFAIK- they went from BARs to M14 ARs to M16 ARs to M249s and now are going to IARs.

The US Army platoon has, AFAIK, always had 7.62mm MGs, at least...

I wouldn't say "lots", but they are there. There's a little of everything. The unit before us had what I THINK was a Remington Rolling Block rifle that they'd pulled out of a cache somewhere.

Have you been to OEF? Or were you in WW2? Then you have no room to compare the two.

The Taliban are NOT superman, but the ones that are still alive are pretty good fighters. Some of the older...

Firing from the bipod makes you more accurate. You might not always be able to employ it, but when you can, why wouldn't you take advantage of the extra stability?

It's often used by SDMs when...

There was not a revision- it was a fact finding mission that was conducted in 2003. The numbers are all from FM 21-28 (it's probably been re-numbered, but not updated), Footmarches, so it is...

No amount of conditioning can make you superhuman. There is plenty of research that says the fighting load should be limited to about 45lbs before you start interfering with the ability to fight...

RJ- roger on all that. As jcustis deduced (evidently I wasn't clear enough), I was trying to point out that there are other places where M249s serve, besides in infantry fire teams. And Rifleman...

Not a Marine, but my artillery battery had 1 M249 (MTOEd as an LMG, with tripod and spare barrel, not as an AR) per howitzer, FDC, CP and a couple more (I think there were 5 or 6 in the supply...

Based on Melody's definitions, what both the USMC and US Army call "fire teams" are really "squads" (capable of fire OR maneuver, not both; the smallest, indivisible element, lead by a single leader)...

I believe that the company weapons platoon has a machine gun section, with 3 squads, each of 2 x M240s.

There is also an HMG platoon in the battalion weapons company, which is usually combined...