Military

Emplacing obstacles (directed, situational and reserve) as part of engagement area (EA) development.
Constructing fighting positions for direct fire weapon systems.
Constructing survivability positions for critical assets such as C4I nodes, radars, and sensors.

Mobility support. The engineers form the breach force to mark bypasses (primary) or create a lane (secondary) in support of a company team's scheme of maneuver.
Countermobility support. The engineers emplace situational obstacles as part of a hasty EA development to integrate fires from a series of on-order ABFs or BPs.

2. Because of limited countermobility and survivability capabilities (few dismounts/two VOLCANOs and four M9s), the force requires echelon-above-division engineer support for a deliberate defense. The task force must allocate sufficient time to allow the engineer unit to prepare and rehearse with the striking force. The staff must develop an event trigger or decision point to disengage from support to the fixing force.

RECOMMENDATION: Figure 4-1 illustrates a way to provide engineer support to a task force mobile defense.

ISSUE 3: What is the impact of the FXXI engineer platoon design on conventional obstacle efforts?

DISCUSSION:

1. Given equal training, the FXXI engineer platoon productivity is reduced by more than one third from that of the larger AOE engineer platoon. There are two methods to improve the productivity of this platoon, or any platoon for that matter.

• The first method is to augment the effort with non-engineer soldiers. This comes with an obvious cost, and the unit must develop drills to efficiently integrate this support.

• The second method is to improve productivity by providing additional tools to the platoon. These include a mechanical marking system and the increased availability of scatterable mines such as mine canisters for the Volcano system.

2. While the increased reliance on scatterable systems makes sense given the resource intensiveness of conventional obstacle emplacement, the force should retain a conventional capability for several reasons:

• Conventional effort may be the best solution in some situations (restrictive terrain).

• The use of a wide variety of obstacles will complicate the enemy's breaching operations and require the enemy to have multiple reduction techniques to successfully reduce our obstacles.

• The ROE may limit the use of obstacles to non-lethal options such as wire and other constructed obstacles.

• It is much easier to reduce the size of the force if the need arises.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

1. Develop a mechanical marking device and increase the availability of Class V scatterable mines.

2. Retain the capability within the engineer force to emplace conventional minefields and constructed obstacles.

3. Develop improved conventional mines (full-width mines that do not have to be buried or are faster/easier to uncrate and prepare).

4. Develop a mechanical system for executing conventional mines.

ISSUE 4: How will the reduced number and size of engineer squads impact the row mining drill?

DISCUSSION:

1. The reduced number and size of engineer squads will require an adjustment to the row mining drill. The FXXI engineer platoon cannot task-organize into simultaneous siting and recording, marking, laying, and mine dump parties, which would require a total of 12-17 soldiers. The platoon must be augmented with non-engineer assets.

2. The alternative is to execute the tasks sequentially, at least partially, which has a negative impact of increasing the time duration.

RECOMMENDATIONS: The best solution is to develop two drills: one for an organic platoon and one for an engineer platoon with augmentation.

1. Drill 1 (Organic Engineer Platoon): The platoon leader task-organizes the platoon into the following parties:

• Siting and recording
• Marking
• Mine dump
• Laying

Once the siting party marks the obstacle group trace, the squad begins emplacement of the perimeter fence while the platoon leader and two-three soldiers lay out each minefield. This crew also marks the centerline (scatterable) or required markings for all other obstacles in the group.
Four-sided fences are the standard, beginning with the enemy side, then the sides, and finally the friendly side. One squad uses an M2 or other cargo vehicle to drop wire and pickets off along the fence line. The dismounts then pound the pickets and string the wire.
After all the wire and pickets are laid on the ground, the M2 can go back to the mine dump or Class IV/V point to get more materials while the dismounts install the perimeter fence.
An opening must be left at both sides of the minefield at the friendly end to allow one way traffic flow of all vehicles inside the minefield. This method resembles the same techniques used with HEMMT support.

These functions include loosening and greasing fuse and booster wells and ensuring proper functioning of the mine.
The team transloads a mine strip onto each laying party's emplacing vehicle or a mine-delivery system.
In a M2, an entire turn/block row of M21 mines can be placed on the floor if laid on the side and not fused. M15 and Ml9 mines could probably also be laid on their side, although this has not been tested.
If necessary, a single M2 will hold enough mines inside for a complete fix/disrupt minefield, if mines are stacked sideways and two deep. On the sides of the Bradley, with the side handle modification, the Bradley can carry around 30 pickets outside, in addition to the 15 rolls of wire on deployed trim van. If the side handles are not modified, the section leader Bradley can carry the pickets inside the troop compartment.

At the start row marker, the carrier team moves into position and prepares to lay mines. The sapper team ties a rope to the end of the lowered ramp or the tow pintle, and ties a partially filled sandbag to the other end of the rope. The rope length from the end of the ramp door to the sandbag is the correct spacing between mines.
The mine-laying squad has Soldier 1 sitting at the rear door seat, taking mines one by one from the floor and handing them to Soldier 2 walking behind the Bradley. When the last mine on the ground reaches the end of the 6-meter rope, the next mine goes down in the proper place.
The Bradley Commander (BC) (Squad leader) ensures that the driver is maintaining a correct azimuth (usually only required for novice drivers or hours of darkness when the intermediate markers and end row markers cannot be seen).
For buried mine rows, the dismounts make a second pass digging in the mines after the row has been laid.
Soldier 3 travels behind the mine-laying vehicle, fusing the mines and preparing the mine for arming (i.e., exact placement, placing tilt rod next to the mine).
The team leader on the ground is supervising the actions of the dismounts. He removes the temporary markers installed by the siting and recording party and replaces the end row markers with permanent markers, completes the strip feeder report (refer to Figure 6-6 of FM 20-32), and arms and buries the mines.

2. Drill 2 (with Non-Engineer Augmentation): The engineer platoon with supporting soldiers task-organizes as described in the table below.

At the start row marker, the carrier team moves into position and prepares to lay mines.
The sapper team ties a rope to the end of the lowered ramp or the tow pintle, and ties a partially filled sandbag to the other end of the rope. The rope length from the end of the ramp door to the sandbag is the correct spacing between mines.
Soldier 1 is at the rear of the squad vehicle.
Soldier 2 sits on the edge of the ramp or open door.
Soldier 3 walks behind the carrier.
Soldier 1 fuses a mine and passes it to Soldier 2.
Soldier 2 records all the mines issued.
Soldier 3 places the fused mines on the ground when the sandbag tied to the rope is even with the previously laid mine.
The laying party NCO walks behind the vehicle and supervises mine laying. He removes the temporary markers installed by the siting and recording party and replaces the end row markers with permanent markers. He also completes the strip feeder report (again, refer to Figure 6-6 of FM 20-32).
Soldier 4 walks behind the vehicle, and arms and buries the mines.
The procedure is repeated for each row. If more than one laying party is employed, the second laying party begins once the first party has moved a safe distance (approximately 25 meters) along its row.

ISSUE 5: FXXI units rely heavily on executing their countermobility tasks with scatterable mine systems. When should the engineer battalion consolidate the battalion's ground Volcano assets?

DISCUSSION: With the reduced number of blade assets and engineer soldiers, the engineer battalion's six ground Volcano systems are the focus for execution of counter-mobility tasks. With only one load, the battalion can emplace nearly 7 kms of minefields (6,600 x 120 meters) in 20 minutes. Leaders may desire to centrally control these assets by creating an ad-hoc Volcano platoon at the battalion level. However, during many missions, the dispersion and number of targets require decentralized execution which negates the advantages of using a battalion-level organization. Planning, preparing, and executing Volcano missions in support of task force maneuver is actually hindered by the centralized control. Control at the engineer battalion level requires that the battalion issue a complete OPORD to the Volcano subunit. It also becomes necessary for the engineer battalion to logistically support this separate unit to include LOGPAC and CASEVAC support. However, the engineer battalion commander is not normally responsible for the AO in which the targets are located nor does he have control of the overwatching maneuver force and the observer assets to monitor NAIs and TAIs. This leads to difficulties in integrating fires with obstacles, and ensuring the area is clear before execution. For most brigade missions, it is not possible for a single platoon-sized element (Volcano team) to emplace Volcanos throughout the width and depth of the brigade AO.

RECOMMENDATION: Task-organize Volcano assets using the following considerations:

1. Determine maintenance status, loads available, and location of all systems during EBA.

2. Integrate employment of Volcanos into each maneuver course of action (scheme of scatterable obstacles).

3. If employed to support task force maneuver, task-organize to task force.

4. If employed to support brigade maneuver but executed within only one task force's AO, task-organize to that task force. Brigade order must direct the execution of the obstacles as well as direct the task force to disrupt, fix, turn or block an enemy force at a designated location through the use of assigned BPs, SBF/ABFs, and EAs. In other words, the brigade must be no more or less directive with obstacle than it is with maneuver tasks.

5. When the desired effect requires multiple Volcano minefields, within a single EA (may support more than one possible EA) overwatched by a brigade-level maneuver force (for example, the brigade reserve), consider task-organizing the Volcano systems with engineer leadership to the brigade-level maneuver force.

6. Synchronize the Volcano plan during COA analysis (war gaming). For Volcanos employed as situational obstacles, the timing for Volcano movement and emplacement, and maneuver force fires integration with a corresponding observer plan must be determined during this MDMP step.

7. Conduct mini-rehearsal to site all Volcano targets as part of the EA development drill with the overwatching maneuver force.

8. Complete PCCs/PCIs early to include communications systems.

9. Conduct rehearsals at all levels. Rehearse timing requirements to include the decision cycle and SCATMINWARNs and SCATMINRECs. Review Volcano plan during all combined arms rehearsals.

10. Battle-track preparation from CL V upload to marking the centerline to DPs/triggers to actual execution.

ISSUE 6: How does the FXXI engineer battalion conduct security operations without dedicated reconnaissance assets?

DISCUSSION: Creating a reconnaissance element out of organic assets or providing engineer soldier to other reconnaissance units, such as the brigade reconnaissance troop, will further degrade the battalion's ability to execute mobility and countermobility tasks due to the limited number of sappers in the platoon. Furthermore, as the engineer commander is not normally responsible for an AO, the use of ad-hoc engineer reconnaissance element requires extensive operational and logistical coordination. The engineer leader must base his decision to support the reconnaissance effort on a prioritized list of engineer-essential tasks for the given mission. If reconnaissance is an essential task, then the leader develops a plan to execute the mission.

RECOMMENDATION: Support the reconnaissance effort based on the following considerations:

1. If reconnaissance is identified as an essential task during mission analysis, integrate it into the brigade combat team or task force R&S plan.

2. Support with an organic element (squad or platoon).

3. Focus on OBSTINTEL (tactical) or required engineer technical data.

4. Know that the "chief of reconnaissance" for the AO command-controls the engineer reconnaissance element (squad or platoon).

Chapter 3: How the Engineer Company Can Support Offensive Missions for the Three-Company Battalion

Chapter 5: The Engineer-Bradley Fighting Vehicle (E-BFV)