Originally Posted by
jcustis
This is an excellent point that I think is often lost on the casual observer of Fire Force ops. There was usually a considerable ballet involved, that started with the sensor (OP, Selous Scout element, etc.) calling in a spotrep. That sensor provided continuous updates to the C2 nodes to fill in details as the call-out proceeded and the shooters (Fire Force) got aloft and on its way to the obj area. The sensor provided critical terminal control of sorts, and once it got the K-car in the area and the battle was joined, the Fire Force commander performed the unique job of controlling all ground movement. There are new sensors that could be use in lieu of the standard OP of that day - but only to a point. I have not been aloft over the green zones down my way, but I have watched plenty of UAS feed, and it is like watching a firefight through a soda straw. That does not give us the sensory perception and depth required to coordinate heavily synchronized ground effort in the same fashion as Fire Force elements of old, in my opinion.
We do not train to a typically high enough standard to control battlefield geometry all that well, and I fear we have simply lost the art of commanding heliborne inserts and follow-on maneuver from an aerial platform. That's another matter I think we would have a hard time overcoming.
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