• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

U. S. Army heavy BDEs along with their supporting FA units have consistently failed to properly plan and execute Firefinder radar employment at the National Training Center (NTC).

This failure has resulted in a degraded ability to provide responsive counterfire and ultimately unnecessary combat losses. The properly employed Firefinder radar initiates prioritized, responsive counterfire that supports the scheme of maneuver and perhaps establishes a window of opportunity for the maneuver to succeed unhampered by enemy artillery. However, the capabilities of the Firefinder radar system have been limited by a multitude of misconceptions in planning responsibilities and employment that appear to be deeply rooted in both the maneuver and fire support communities.

The following list of most common misconceptions I have observed as an O/C portray the depth of the misunderstanding surrounding radar employment. Planning and execution trends observed: Many FA and maneuver leaders believe the radar technician is totally responsible for radar employment and radar zone management, and that planned critical friendly zones (CFZs) provide absolute force protection. Fire support officers (FSOs) believe a planned zone is always active and will provide adequate protection for the force with no further involvement beyond the planning stage. Radar movement, cueing, and redundant AN/TPQ-37 coverage are not planned, rehearsed or incorporated into the appropriate decision support template (DST), intelligence collection plan or synchronization matrix.

Additionally, planning range capabilities for the AN/TPQ-36 radar, the knowledge of enemy phases of fires (both offensive and defensive), and the doctrinal shooters (DAG/RAG) are not linked to the development and wargaming of planned zones and radar positioning. Without these considerations applied, triggered radar movement and cueing cannot be effectively planned to support the scheme of maneuver with prioritized counterfire.

All to often the artillery trains in a vacuum. Seldom does an artillery TOC receive a maneuver commander's planning guidance to focus development of the Critical Fire Support Tasks (CFSTs) and to initiate the FA orders process. Without a maneuver fire support element to manage the development of the radar employment plan, one is usually scripted. This type of training paints an artificial view of the synchronization required between maneuver, fire support and FA battalion planners to develop and implement an effective Firefinder radar employment plan.

The reality here at the NTC of combined arms operations and hostile opposing forces, quickly exposes the detrimental effects of an ineffective relationship between maneuver planners and artillery execution. This common failure is attributed to the lack of combined arms training and a thorough understanding of the synchronization requirements to link the scheme of maneuver with radar employment and counterfire execution.

"Counterfire is the maneuver commander's responsibility," FM 6-121, and his staff must prioritize, allocate, and approve Firefinder radar zones within the maneuver unit's sector. Without the maneuver commander's planning guidance, most FA units generate plans focused solely on the force protection of FA assets, acquisition of threat artillery and corresponding radar positioning. An effective radar employment plan must include time-phased CFZs planned for deliberate breaching sites (pg 41, FM 90-13-1), selected maneuver battle and artillery positions as prioritized by the maneuver commander. Additionally, call for fire zones (CFFZs) must be planned and refined to locate the enemy's artillery. Radar positioning and clearance of fires to support force protection and threat artillery engagement priorities must be planned, wargamed and rehearsed.

The maneuver commander's guidance must include top-down planning and bottom-up refinement guidelines, priorities within the BDE sector for radar zones, and most importantly, assigned responsibility to facilitate the plan's execution. Real-time information quickly shared with the FA BN S2 will ensure accurate CFZs are emplaced to provide responsive counterfire and force protection when the maneuver elements are most vulnerable to enemy indirect fires.

To clarify zone management and incorporate the maneuver commander's guidance, a proper planning sequence must be followed. Firefinder zone planning must be structured around a simple sequential process.

ZONE PLANNING SEQUENCE

Tactical Zone Management

1. Prioritize the brigade's sector for zone planning that meets the maneuver commander's planning guidance (BDE FSE).

2. Allocate and approve the zones that support the scheme of maneuver, meet the commander's guidance for force protection and facilitate the engagement of high payoff targets (commander, targeting team, FSE).

3. Incorporated into the appropriate decision support templates (DSTs), synch matrixes and intelligence collection plans (BDE FSE, FA BN S2/S3).

4. Refined during course-of-action (COA) development and wargaming process (BDE FSE, FA BN S2/S3).

Technical Zone Management

5. Rehearsed during combined arms and fire support rehearsals (BDE FSE, TF FSOs, FA BN S2/S3, radar technician).

6. Refined during execution as the IPB improves and scheme of maneuver changes (BDE FSE, TF FSOs, FA BN S2/S3, radar technician).

7. Select radar positions that optimizes the probability of acquisition and supports the coverage of planned zones (BN S2/S3, radar technician).

Responsibilities for radar employment and zone management must be fixed to focus the planning process. As stated earlier, the maneuver commander is ultimately responsible for counterfire and his staff's fixed responsibilities must include:

1. BDE Targeting Team (BDE XO, BDE FSO, targeting officer, ALO, DS BN S2/S3, FDO).

1. Coordinates and synchronizes all target acquisition assets employment and radar zone allocation.

2. Ensures planned zones are prioritized to support the high payoff target list (HPTL) and the scheme of maneuver.

3. Assigns cueing agents to trigger the radar which activates planned zones that correspond to Named Areas of Interest (NAI) and Priority Intelligence Requirements (PIRs).

2. FSCOORD/BDE FSO.

1. Translates the maneuver commander's guidance for force protection and engagement of enemy indirect fire weapons.

2. Gives guidance to TF FSOs and solicits force protection measures (CFZs) from each TF.

3. Recommends zones to the commander during the planning process.

4. Ensures the radar employment plan is incorporated into the R & S/intelligence collection plan.

5. Ensures priorities and triggers are developed for the activation and inactivation of each planned zone.

6. Integrates the planned triggers for radar movement and zones into the appropriate DST/synch matrix.

7. Incorporates zone management into the combined arms and fire support rehearsals.

8. Ensures zones are sent to the DS BN S2 for inclusion in the radar deployment order (RDO).

3. BDE/TF FSO.

1. Develops zones to support the TF plan (CFZs/CZs), breach sites, battle positions, and others.

2. Nominates zones to the BDE/TF commander for approval and priority.

3. Develops precise triggers for zone activation and inactivation.

4. Ensures the developed triggers for approved zones are incorporated into the supported unit's DST/Synch Matrix.

5. Establishes ownership and responsibility for the zones.

6. Ensures any changes to the scheme of maneuver are balanced against planned zones.

7. Ensures refinement is completed and sent to the DS BN S2 for transmission to the radar.

4. DS FA BN S3.

1. Incorporates zone management and radar positioning into the DST/Synch Matrix.

2. Ensures TA TAB to the FASP includes coordination measures for zone development and radar positioning.

3. Ensures land management for the radar is coordinated with the maneuver TOC.

4. Ensures clearance of fires and attack guidance for counterfire missions within the BDE sector are coordinated and understood by all members of the TOC.

5. DS FA BN S2.

1. Develops CFFZs based on the templated enemy artillery positions and confirmed intelligence data.

2. Develops force protection zones (CFZs) for FA units.

3. Nominates zones to BDE FSE for approval.

4. Ensures the radar employment plan is integrated into the intelligence collection plan.

5. Receives approved zones from the BDE FSE for inclusion into the RDO.

6. Constructs the RDO and briefs the radar technician.

7. Refines zones as IPB improves or scheme of maneuver changes.

6. Radar Technician.

1. Ensures the capabilities and limitations of the radar system are considered during the planning process.

2. Selects radar positions that support the search sector requirements of planned zones, optimize the probabilities of acquisition and facilitate required moves to support the scheme of maneuver.

3. Identifies zone restrictions violated during the planning and rehearsal process.

4. Participates in all appropriate rehearsals and rock drills.

The key to the successful planning and execution of Firefinder radar employment is the active involvement of FSOs and the maneuver staff in the development and execution of the plan. Additionally, the BDE FSO, S2, targeting officer, and Fire Support Sergeants must assist the controlling FA BN S2 in the triggering and refinement of radar zones to ensure effective force protection and responsible counterfire are delivered.

To ensure the Firefinder radar employment plan is effective, all leaders and planners must understand the capabilities, limitations, and products of the system. Plans that do not manage the high volume of digital fire missions and artillery intelligence data generated by the radar negate the system's influence on the battlefield. Additionally, plans that do not clarify clearance of fires for counterfire missions will limit the artillery's ability to provide responsive counterfire.

If our planning process addresses each issue and defines solutions in our execution matrixes, our plan will succeed. Counterfire is not a separate battle and cannot be left to the artillery to plan in a vacuum. Experience at the NTC has shown Firefinder radar employment (zones) must be planned, rehearsed, and executed by the combined arms team to be successful.

Fire Support Trends

Field Artillery Battery Troop-Leading Procedures