Of course there is a lot to cover here so to make it even more interesting than watching paint dry I have thrown in a few war stories to make you laugh, make you cry and, most importantly, make the ideas stick in your head.
A fair demonstration of effective camouflage, an essential for the modern soldier. (USMC)
SEAL Operation: Kill Bin Laden
We can learn a number of vital lessons from the successful operation to kill Bin Laden.
Lesson One is the vital importance of intelligence from operators in the field and the interrogation of prisoners. Starting with just a clue in 2002, British and US agents in Pakistan, and US Intelligence personnel interrogating terrorist prisoners, gradually tracked down Bin Laden to a town called Abbottabad, 31 miles north-east of the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. By April 2011 further intelligence efforts confirmed that that there was a 90% chance that Bin Laden was living in a large house at Abbottabad within a one-acre compound surrounded by 18ft walls. Surprisingly, for a high-status dwelling, the house had no telephone or internet connection. This was deemed suspicious. Based on this information, and more, President Obama made the decision to send SEAL Team 6 to kill Bin Laden – a total force of two dozen men and an SF dog named Cairo. The decision was also made not to inform the Pakistani leadership, although they are technically allies, of the planned assault. This meant that the local intelligence efforts as well as the success of the mission were not compromised.
On the night of 2 May 2011 surveillance aircraft blocked communications over a wide area as two secret stealth helicopters – an advance on the Blackhawk/Pavehawk model – brought in the SF troops. All the while fighters and gunships patrolled the skies overhead. The original plan was that one helicopter would drop a team by rope onto the roof of the building and one would land in the compound. However, because of ground effect air blast created by the massive compound walls one of the helicopters became unstable. Even the ace pilot flying it was unable to keep control and it crashed into the compound wall.
Lesson Two therefore is that SF soldiers need to think on their feet – and the plan was hastily revised to enter the buildings from the ground and work upwards. Little armed resistance was met and both Bin Laden and one of his wives were shot dead, the latter as she attempted to protect him.
Lesson Three is that a live prisoner is not worth the risk to the SF operators if there is even the slightest suspicion that the detainee could be armed or wired. But securing the body (‘proof of death’) was crucial to ensure the success of the operation. As a result the body was flown out of the compound and the necessary DNA evidence secured before burial at sea. SF operators must also ensure that no vital equipment or information falls into the hands of the enemy. Therefore the crashed helicopter was destroyed with explosives.
All personnel returned safely to base. Overall a very well run operation using SF troops who could clearly think on their feet and act independently when required.
In this section I’ve covered all the main groups of weapons you are likely to be issued with or come across in your military life; also some personal equipment for navigation and communications as this sort of fits in nicely.
The average terrorist doesn’t use the same Quartermaster as us so besides principally British, American and European equipment we will be looking at Russian and Chinese kit as these are the well-armed insurgent’s favourite suppliers. Both countries produce the RPG7 rocket launcher and the Kalashnikov assault rifle for instance.
Some readers will already be well trained in most areas of soldiering skills but it is my aim to ensure you all know what you are doing – whether new recruit or Special Forces operator – to a very high standard. This will make you a better soldier and keep you alive longer. To ensure everyone follows along and hasn’t missed ‘Chapter 1’ I will be explaining everything as if you had never seen it before. Bear with me as the more you know the better chance you have of surviving any particular confrontation and most of us have forgotten a thing or two from training.
In any event, knowing the capabilities and potential of particular equipment focuses the mind when it is being used against you and gives you the confidence to plan and respond appropriately. You know what the insurgent, terrorist or guerrilla fighter can do and you know what is myth. It’s always better, to my mind, to know the true facts then you can make better decisions based on them. Knowledge dispels fear. Which is always a good thing when everyone around you is being shot to pieces.
Knowing the facts about what you are up against is the first step in defeating the threat.
When all is said and done, the better you know your weapons, and your enemies’ weapons, the better you can kill the enemy and prevent him from killing you. And that is the name of the game isn’t it? What you will learn here is what guns, rockets, mines and so on can really do – and what they can’t do so the movies don’t give you the wrong idea.
You will see that, so far as possible, I have covered each weapon under a series of headings. My idea is that this leads you to look at the weapons here, and any similar type of weapon, in a similar way. You will therefore be able to assess any weapon you come across and know what questions to ask when considering it for a combat role and how to compare it with other weapons of its type. Rate of fire, range reliability, that sort of thing. So in each section you will see the following (with just a few exceptions) which in line with a long military tradition we will remember the headings with the mnemonic GHOSTS:
After all I have said here and elsewhere about clever weapons, I believe that you, the soldier, are the real weapon – you don’t need fancy guns to be dangerous you just need the right training and attitude. You can steal everything else. The only thing you can’t do without is your boots. So just to upset the obvious order of things we’ll start with your boots because if you can’t walk and you’re out in the sticks with no support then you will die.
BOOTS AND OTHER FOOTWEAR: MARCH OR DIE!
A civilian opening this book might wonder why I’m starting with a lecture on footwear. Shouldn’t I be starting with machine guns and things that go bang to catch your attention? The veteran will smile.
Anyone who has gone so far as getting through basic infantry training will understand that it’s not called ‘boot camp’ for nothing. Even though the infantry soldier nowadays often has transport laid on in the form of helicopters and various types of Armoured Personnel Carriers, much of his time is still spent on foot because the infantry soldiers’ primary job is to ‘take and hold ground’. You take ground by walking over it and taking it from anyone arguing and you hold ground by either digging in and sitting there or, again, walking over it on patrol. Even with a dug-in static position you do clearance patrols around the position morning and evening.