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Showing posts with label Break Contact. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Break Contact. Show all posts
Monday, May 16, 2016
Ambushing
Ambushing is a vital tool in Guerilla warfare, and the primary method we will be using to engage our adversaries in a SHTF scenario. Hit and run tactics will be very important to master, so hopefully, you guys are training on these concepts. I have posted videos below about ambushing that would be good for you to go over. Watch the videos, see the differences, then take what you learn and add in the most useful aspects for your AO to your training.
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Gear for the American Patriot: The Tactical Patriot Store
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Wednesday, May 4, 2016
Tactical Training
Here are some more videos for you guys to check out. These are pretty good examples of how you could be performing training. I know it is hard to catch training like this on a video and still get an sense of what is actually going on, but check them out, there is some good stuff here. I am trying to get you guys thinking about how to improve your training, so this is an ongoing topic that I am adding to little by little.
Please watch these videos and think about how training like that could help you and your group, and or how you can incorporate some of the concepts and ideas into your training. These videos show some different patrolling, reaction to contact, and hasty attack. These are some of the basic concepts that we need to be working on and mastering as well as some of the more advanced things that I have been talking about.
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Gear for the American Patriot: The Tactical Patriot Store
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Please watch these videos and think about how training like that could help you and your group, and or how you can incorporate some of the concepts and ideas into your training. These videos show some different patrolling, reaction to contact, and hasty attack. These are some of the basic concepts that we need to be working on and mastering as well as some of the more advanced things that I have been talking about.
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Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Tactical Training plan ideas
Training Outline
A training ladder that takes someone up from untrained, to being competent to be a member of a team, to being competent to be a fire-team leader, and then a squad leader.
Three levels for infantry/security: I, II, III
1. Basic skills all team members need to know. Consider these "common tasks" or skills. Regardless of specialty, every group member needs to be trained to a basic level of competency in these core skills.
2. What a fire-team leader needs to know and/or a member of a more skilled team such as a "Minuteman" or QRF type force. More advanced infantry skills, which become more specialized, more CQB (including weapon retention, use of weapon as impact weapon, hand-to hand, etc.) building and room clearing, fixed position defense, intelligence, planning operations, and leadership in combat. Focus is on cultivating strong fire-team leaders capable of independent decision making and training their own group.
3. Squad leader or above knowledge. Focus on leadership, planning, and logistics, as well as being able to effectively train others. At this level, being able to organize, instruct, lead small units and coordinate their use in an AOR (area of responsibility). This person should be able to go into an area and organize/train up a local resistance force.
All group members should learn the same skills for each level, but the more capable will be considered "infantry" who will go out in the field on a fire team. The less fit/capable will be the "home guard" and security for the larger group.
INFANTRY/SECURITY LEVEL I
Weapons safety
The four rules of gun safety are a great standard:
1. Guns are always loaded.
2. Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on target.
4. Identify your target, and what is behind it.
Weapons handling (how it works, disassembly, cleaning, maintenance, loading, unloading, carry methods, mag changes, clearing malfunctions, etc).
Marksmanship
Rife and handgun. (Rifle is priority).
Carbine I. One day
Familiarization. Loading/unloading.
Mag changes, malfunction drills. Field shooting positions. Snap shooting.
Group members need to be able to run their rifle as an effective fighting weapon in the field. Groups need a well-developed practice program as well as minimal standards for shooting in a dynamic environment.
SMALL TEAM TACTICS
THREE DAY CLASS 1. (Three to four man teams).
a. Communications. How to use radios properly.
b. Basic formations, includes hand signals.
c. Defensive positions. Shell scrapes, and two man positions.
d. Patrolling. Tactical movement, listening halts, reaction to contact, crossing danger areas, hasty ambush, etc.
e.Patrol base. How to set one up, and the routine to be followed in one.
f. Sentry duty. Challenge and Pass words. Sectors of fire.
g. React to contact, (fire, dash, down, crawl, identify target, suppressive fire). Break contact. Bounding/Peeling backward/sideways/forward.
SALUTE REPORT
Three Day class 2.
Movement to contact and fight through. Raids and ambushes. React to ambush. Hasty ambush.
Fighting through - Bounding forward
Fixed position defense and perimeter security.
MEDICAL . Combat lifesaver. All group members should be trained to combat lifesaver standard.
Introduction to building/room entry and clearing.
Vehicle movement and convoy defense/offense. React to contact in and around vehicles.
LAWFUL USE OF FORCE
Instruction on law and liability, lawful use of force for self-defense and defense of others under the "reasonable man" standard, the force continuum, and liability considerations.
COMBAT MINDSET AND AWARENESS
Thoughts on Skill Level I:
The group needs to be competent as a fire-team. That includes a great deal of skills, ranging from firearms safety and proficiency , to small unit tactics and battle drills , basic communications, land nav, Combat Lifesaver, to performing a SALUTE report, and standing watch, etc.
Figure on answering the question "what would you want a guy to know how to do before you went through a door with him while responding to an active shooter incident, or out on patrol in the woods, or on a vehicle patrol/convoy? What minimal level of training do you want him to have if you are going to be in a fire-fight together? What does he need to know how to do to be a decent team member? What level of basic firearms safety and competency must he have before you trust him with live fire team tactics drills?
The group needs to be fundamentally solid, and they also need to start learning the correct way to fight as individuals/buddy teams/fire-teams, and squads. This needs to happen as soon as possible, so they work on small unit tactics at the same time they continue to work on their own weapons handling and marksmanship.
A good thing for group members would be to attend an NRA class or two, as well as Appleseed, or equivalent, so they can benefit from those other programs that are held all over.
CPT INFANTRY/SECURITY LEVEL II
Fighting in built up areas. Entering buildings, fighting inside, and defending. Vehicle patrols and react to contact. Convoys. VIP protection. INTEL. gather, process and disseminate.
NIGHT MOVEMENT AND LAND NAVIGATION.
Hand to hand, boxing, grappling, weapon retention, basic disarming drills.
Stalking in. (essentially a "sniper" stalk, but without concern for shooting standards - teaching infiltration and exfiltration and appreciation of micro-terrain and camouflage).
MED II. sutures, splints, wilderness medicine, "grid down" medicine.
Contact report. FLASH CARDS and vehicle and equipment recognition.
Ruck march. Give the group a personal training track.
MAN TRACKING: An often overlooked, but critical skill. Has been invaluable in irregular warfare and counterinsurgency worldwide. At Level II, the group members need to learn at least the basics. Helps with countering trackers too.
Radio skills, HAM, FRS/GMRS, CB, etc…
LEVEL III
More advanced hand to hand, CQB, Force on force, E&E, & wilderness survival, more difficult scenarios for ambush, reaction to contact, and tactical maneuvers.
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Gear for the American Patriot: The Tactical Patriot Store
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A training ladder that takes someone up from untrained, to being competent to be a member of a team, to being competent to be a fire-team leader, and then a squad leader.
Three levels for infantry/security: I, II, III
1. Basic skills all team members need to know. Consider these "common tasks" or skills. Regardless of specialty, every group member needs to be trained to a basic level of competency in these core skills.
2. What a fire-team leader needs to know and/or a member of a more skilled team such as a "Minuteman" or QRF type force. More advanced infantry skills, which become more specialized, more CQB (including weapon retention, use of weapon as impact weapon, hand-to hand, etc.) building and room clearing, fixed position defense, intelligence, planning operations, and leadership in combat. Focus is on cultivating strong fire-team leaders capable of independent decision making and training their own group.
3. Squad leader or above knowledge. Focus on leadership, planning, and logistics, as well as being able to effectively train others. At this level, being able to organize, instruct, lead small units and coordinate their use in an AOR (area of responsibility). This person should be able to go into an area and organize/train up a local resistance force.
All group members should learn the same skills for each level, but the more capable will be considered "infantry" who will go out in the field on a fire team. The less fit/capable will be the "home guard" and security for the larger group.
INFANTRY/SECURITY LEVEL I
Weapons safety
The four rules of gun safety are a great standard:
1. Guns are always loaded.
2. Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on target.
4. Identify your target, and what is behind it.
Weapons handling (how it works, disassembly, cleaning, maintenance, loading, unloading, carry methods, mag changes, clearing malfunctions, etc).
Marksmanship
Rife and handgun. (Rifle is priority).
Carbine I. One day
Familiarization. Loading/unloading.
Mag changes, malfunction drills. Field shooting positions. Snap shooting.
Group members need to be able to run their rifle as an effective fighting weapon in the field. Groups need a well-developed practice program as well as minimal standards for shooting in a dynamic environment.
SMALL TEAM TACTICS
THREE DAY CLASS 1. (Three to four man teams).
a. Communications. How to use radios properly.
b. Basic formations, includes hand signals.
c. Defensive positions. Shell scrapes, and two man positions.
d. Patrolling. Tactical movement, listening halts, reaction to contact, crossing danger areas, hasty ambush, etc.
e.Patrol base. How to set one up, and the routine to be followed in one.
f. Sentry duty. Challenge and Pass words. Sectors of fire.
g. React to contact, (fire, dash, down, crawl, identify target, suppressive fire). Break contact. Bounding/Peeling backward/sideways/forward.
SALUTE REPORT
Three Day class 2.
Movement to contact and fight through. Raids and ambushes. React to ambush. Hasty ambush.
Fighting through - Bounding forward
Fixed position defense and perimeter security.
MEDICAL . Combat lifesaver. All group members should be trained to combat lifesaver standard.
Introduction to building/room entry and clearing.
Vehicle movement and convoy defense/offense. React to contact in and around vehicles.
LAWFUL USE OF FORCE
Instruction on law and liability, lawful use of force for self-defense and defense of others under the "reasonable man" standard, the force continuum, and liability considerations.
COMBAT MINDSET AND AWARENESS
Thoughts on Skill Level I:
The group needs to be competent as a fire-team. That includes a great deal of skills, ranging from firearms safety and proficiency , to small unit tactics and battle drills , basic communications, land nav, Combat Lifesaver, to performing a SALUTE report, and standing watch, etc.
Figure on answering the question "what would you want a guy to know how to do before you went through a door with him while responding to an active shooter incident, or out on patrol in the woods, or on a vehicle patrol/convoy? What minimal level of training do you want him to have if you are going to be in a fire-fight together? What does he need to know how to do to be a decent team member? What level of basic firearms safety and competency must he have before you trust him with live fire team tactics drills?
The group needs to be fundamentally solid, and they also need to start learning the correct way to fight as individuals/buddy teams/fire-teams, and squads. This needs to happen as soon as possible, so they work on small unit tactics at the same time they continue to work on their own weapons handling and marksmanship.
A good thing for group members would be to attend an NRA class or two, as well as Appleseed, or equivalent, so they can benefit from those other programs that are held all over.
CPT INFANTRY/SECURITY LEVEL II
Fighting in built up areas. Entering buildings, fighting inside, and defending. Vehicle patrols and react to contact. Convoys. VIP protection. INTEL. gather, process and disseminate.
NIGHT MOVEMENT AND LAND NAVIGATION.
Hand to hand, boxing, grappling, weapon retention, basic disarming drills.
Stalking in. (essentially a "sniper" stalk, but without concern for shooting standards - teaching infiltration and exfiltration and appreciation of micro-terrain and camouflage).
MED II. sutures, splints, wilderness medicine, "grid down" medicine.
Contact report. FLASH CARDS and vehicle and equipment recognition.
Ruck march. Give the group a personal training track.
MAN TRACKING: An often overlooked, but critical skill. Has been invaluable in irregular warfare and counterinsurgency worldwide. At Level II, the group members need to learn at least the basics. Helps with countering trackers too.
Radio skills, HAM, FRS/GMRS, CB, etc…
LEVEL III
More advanced hand to hand, CQB, Force on force, E&E, & wilderness survival, more difficult scenarios for ambush, reaction to contact, and tactical maneuvers.
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Saturday, April 2, 2016
Team Tactics
Here is some great information and lessons learned from Max Velocity from the training he gives. He is a very knowledgeable guy and I love the way he is able to articulate himself. This article has some great information, and ideas. Use this information and add it to, or modify your current training to reflect ideas that you can incorporate into your training. I hope you are training!
Tactical Notes from FoF Team Tactics:
I found myself going over many of the same basic points again and again at FoF Team Tactics, which are the same points that I hammer at CTT and CP classes, and it took a lot of ‘dying’ on behalf of the students to really hoist these things in. At CTT, a mix of poor physical preparation on behalf of the student, plus the ‘firehose’ information dump of the class, often result in poor attention to some of the basic areas that will keep them alive in combat, such as taking effective cover, and moving rapidly from cover to cover, or no movement without effective suppressing fire. Ivan does not shoot back, but in FoF when the live enemy is putting UTM rounds at you, and they are striking you in the face, or zipping past your head, it really makes the point. Here are some notes:
Rehearsal of team SOPs is vital.
Make a plan, and have a leader. Follow the leader, and allow him to direct you to achieve the mission, which means paying attention.
Effective scanning is essential. Head out of your weapon! Situational awareness, which includes scanning to the flanks, or you will be rolled up. How many times do cadre tell the students “get your head out of your weapon” and “scan means scan” on a CTT class? Tunnel vision and staring at where Ivan last was seems to be the trend!
Ensure you look in often for hand signals, otherwise you will be in your own zone, and have no clue what is going on.
Hand signals are essential during silent patrolling. The leader needs to be able to signal intent. Some of the things that you will need to consider hand signals for, that you may not have considered before, are as follows (examples will be given at FoF classes):
•Axis of advance / on line.
•Enemy direction
•Hasty ambush
•Bounding overwatch – forwards and backwards
•Peeling
•Flanking
•Move up / get on line / change axis
None of these hand signals will work if team members are not paying attention, by regular scanning of their sectors and to their buddies. If you get a hand signal, react to it and make it happen.
When it goes noisy, you need to be able to yell. Team members must listen, and every man is a link man and must pass the direction on. You may still have use for hand signals at this time, particularly if units become separated on something like a flanking move. Ensure that if you see something, you also communicate it effectively to other team members and the team leader. No secrets!
Do not be too hasty to rush to your death – do not attempt fire and movement if the enemy is not effectively suppressed. Rounds whacking into your team members every time they get up to run forward means the enemy is not suppressed, and in fact you are under effective enemy fire.
Ensure you identify cover before you move to it – and do not be hasty to rush to your death.
Ensure that if you have any type of stoppage, you improve your position of cover. Kneeling in the open to take care of a malfunction is not the recipe for a long life. This is taught all the way from the square range.
Suppressing the enemy means exactly that – effective accurate fire that will change the behavior of the enemy to where he can no longer suppress you.
To suppress the enemy you have to ensure team members have located him/them – use target indication ( 3 D’s) and ensure the information is communicated along the line. If team members are having their own individual fights with ‘their’ enemy, it means as one group gets up to bound forwards, ‘their’ enemy is not suppressed, and will kill them. SCAN! Do not get tunnel vision.
You must suppress the entirety of the enemy facing your team if you are to move without casualties. Due to inherent safety angles of moving groups (target obscuration), this will entail breaking the F&M down into smaller groups along the line as you get closer (i.e. breaking down from pairs to buddy fire and movement as the team gets closer – now taught on both the CTT and FoF classes).
Ensure that you are actually doing ‘short bounds’ and not ‘hero bounds.’ Move fast and low from cover to cover. ‘Keep low, move fast.’
Never underestimate the actual and psychological effect of a flanking move. BUT: ensure you are watching your flank so it does not happen to you, and ensure that separating groups does not lead to blue on blue situations.
Positively Identify (PID) your target before you engage. Not everything out there is the enemy, and just because it is moving, it may well be an injured team member that you just lit up.
Untrained armed teams will be responsible for a large amount of fracticide, both due to incompetence when first encountering the enemy and attempting to effectively return fire, and also due to indiscriminate target engagement. A large focus of MVT training is on buddy awareness, and breaking the tunnel vision of your ‘relationship’ with ‘Ivan’ so that you do not kill your buddies. This is something that is not understood in the ‘tacticool’ world of the square range, and is applicable to real combat.
Training, or ‘operant conditioning’ will reduce freezing, something that was also apparent on the FoF class. Yes, you should not be too hasty to rush to your death and you should suppress the enemy as best you can before you move, and you should identify your next piece of cover before you move to it, but at the same time, if you are doing a maneuver, such as a peel, then do it, don’t freeze and become unresponsive to the team. That will likely lead to the team’s death in place.
If you have a competent leader with a plan, then you as a team member should allow him to ‘use you’ as a ‘tool’ to accomplish that plan. If you are a follower, be a follower. That still allows you, as a ‘battlefield sensor’ to input information on newly located enemy, or flanking moves, or whatever, but you should do that and remain as a responsive weapon that the team leader can use to accomplish the mission. In team tactics, the leaders are using the ‘resources’ to put effective fire on the enemy and maneuver to accomplish the mission. Team members must be an active and useful part of that scheme, or the maneuver will stall, and you will start to die.
You can only develop the competence stated in the paragraph above, where everyone is a useful and active/attentive member of a team, alert to the situation, if you have trained and moved past the tendency to be an unresponsive blob, locked in tunnel vision.
That’s all that comes to mind right now, but I will update as appropriate if/when I realize that I have missed something.
You may note that most of what I have mentioned here is to do with the actual practical application of fire and movement, and SUT. This is not the sort of thing that will be grasped by reading manuals or watching videos. It needs to be trained, and it needs to be trained enough, through a mixture of live firing and FoF training, so that students will grasp this at a deep and unconscious level, thus significantly enhancing their chances of survival in a combat situation.
I cannot stress enough how I urge you, if you are a one-time or some-time-ago alumni or simply a blog or forum reader, to invest the time to get to a training class. It should be at least an annual event, with home based training for the rest of the year. If you can get CTT, CP and FoF done in the first year, you are hitting the jackpot and will be making significant advances not only towards the survivability of your tribe, but also in becoming dangerous to your enemies.
Article from Max Velocity Blog
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Gear for the American Patriot: The Tactical Patriot Store
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Tactical Notes from FoF Team Tactics:
I found myself going over many of the same basic points again and again at FoF Team Tactics, which are the same points that I hammer at CTT and CP classes, and it took a lot of ‘dying’ on behalf of the students to really hoist these things in. At CTT, a mix of poor physical preparation on behalf of the student, plus the ‘firehose’ information dump of the class, often result in poor attention to some of the basic areas that will keep them alive in combat, such as taking effective cover, and moving rapidly from cover to cover, or no movement without effective suppressing fire. Ivan does not shoot back, but in FoF when the live enemy is putting UTM rounds at you, and they are striking you in the face, or zipping past your head, it really makes the point. Here are some notes:
Rehearsal of team SOPs is vital.
Make a plan, and have a leader. Follow the leader, and allow him to direct you to achieve the mission, which means paying attention.
Effective scanning is essential. Head out of your weapon! Situational awareness, which includes scanning to the flanks, or you will be rolled up. How many times do cadre tell the students “get your head out of your weapon” and “scan means scan” on a CTT class? Tunnel vision and staring at where Ivan last was seems to be the trend!
Ensure you look in often for hand signals, otherwise you will be in your own zone, and have no clue what is going on.
Hand signals are essential during silent patrolling. The leader needs to be able to signal intent. Some of the things that you will need to consider hand signals for, that you may not have considered before, are as follows (examples will be given at FoF classes):
•Axis of advance / on line.
•Enemy direction
•Hasty ambush
•Bounding overwatch – forwards and backwards
•Peeling
•Flanking
•Move up / get on line / change axis
None of these hand signals will work if team members are not paying attention, by regular scanning of their sectors and to their buddies. If you get a hand signal, react to it and make it happen.
When it goes noisy, you need to be able to yell. Team members must listen, and every man is a link man and must pass the direction on. You may still have use for hand signals at this time, particularly if units become separated on something like a flanking move. Ensure that if you see something, you also communicate it effectively to other team members and the team leader. No secrets!
Do not be too hasty to rush to your death – do not attempt fire and movement if the enemy is not effectively suppressed. Rounds whacking into your team members every time they get up to run forward means the enemy is not suppressed, and in fact you are under effective enemy fire.
Ensure you identify cover before you move to it – and do not be hasty to rush to your death.
Ensure that if you have any type of stoppage, you improve your position of cover. Kneeling in the open to take care of a malfunction is not the recipe for a long life. This is taught all the way from the square range.
Suppressing the enemy means exactly that – effective accurate fire that will change the behavior of the enemy to where he can no longer suppress you.
To suppress the enemy you have to ensure team members have located him/them – use target indication ( 3 D’s) and ensure the information is communicated along the line. If team members are having their own individual fights with ‘their’ enemy, it means as one group gets up to bound forwards, ‘their’ enemy is not suppressed, and will kill them. SCAN! Do not get tunnel vision.
You must suppress the entirety of the enemy facing your team if you are to move without casualties. Due to inherent safety angles of moving groups (target obscuration), this will entail breaking the F&M down into smaller groups along the line as you get closer (i.e. breaking down from pairs to buddy fire and movement as the team gets closer – now taught on both the CTT and FoF classes).
Ensure that you are actually doing ‘short bounds’ and not ‘hero bounds.’ Move fast and low from cover to cover. ‘Keep low, move fast.’
Never underestimate the actual and psychological effect of a flanking move. BUT: ensure you are watching your flank so it does not happen to you, and ensure that separating groups does not lead to blue on blue situations.
Positively Identify (PID) your target before you engage. Not everything out there is the enemy, and just because it is moving, it may well be an injured team member that you just lit up.
Untrained armed teams will be responsible for a large amount of fracticide, both due to incompetence when first encountering the enemy and attempting to effectively return fire, and also due to indiscriminate target engagement. A large focus of MVT training is on buddy awareness, and breaking the tunnel vision of your ‘relationship’ with ‘Ivan’ so that you do not kill your buddies. This is something that is not understood in the ‘tacticool’ world of the square range, and is applicable to real combat.
Training, or ‘operant conditioning’ will reduce freezing, something that was also apparent on the FoF class. Yes, you should not be too hasty to rush to your death and you should suppress the enemy as best you can before you move, and you should identify your next piece of cover before you move to it, but at the same time, if you are doing a maneuver, such as a peel, then do it, don’t freeze and become unresponsive to the team. That will likely lead to the team’s death in place.
If you have a competent leader with a plan, then you as a team member should allow him to ‘use you’ as a ‘tool’ to accomplish that plan. If you are a follower, be a follower. That still allows you, as a ‘battlefield sensor’ to input information on newly located enemy, or flanking moves, or whatever, but you should do that and remain as a responsive weapon that the team leader can use to accomplish the mission. In team tactics, the leaders are using the ‘resources’ to put effective fire on the enemy and maneuver to accomplish the mission. Team members must be an active and useful part of that scheme, or the maneuver will stall, and you will start to die.
You can only develop the competence stated in the paragraph above, where everyone is a useful and active/attentive member of a team, alert to the situation, if you have trained and moved past the tendency to be an unresponsive blob, locked in tunnel vision.
That’s all that comes to mind right now, but I will update as appropriate if/when I realize that I have missed something.
You may note that most of what I have mentioned here is to do with the actual practical application of fire and movement, and SUT. This is not the sort of thing that will be grasped by reading manuals or watching videos. It needs to be trained, and it needs to be trained enough, through a mixture of live firing and FoF training, so that students will grasp this at a deep and unconscious level, thus significantly enhancing their chances of survival in a combat situation.
I cannot stress enough how I urge you, if you are a one-time or some-time-ago alumni or simply a blog or forum reader, to invest the time to get to a training class. It should be at least an annual event, with home based training for the rest of the year. If you can get CTT, CP and FoF done in the first year, you are hitting the jackpot and will be making significant advances not only towards the survivability of your tribe, but also in becoming dangerous to your enemies.
Article from Max Velocity Blog
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Saturday, February 20, 2016
How to survive a roadblock ambush
Surviving an Expedient Ambush Roadblock While Traveling by Vehicle, by M.W.
In the days following a societal collapse, there will be some people who will be on the move from where the problems exist to where they hope safety lies. There can be many reasons why people are on the move, and an equal number of reasons why someone else may wish to stop your progress. Getting on the move and out of a hostile area as early as possible in the wake of a collapse is a significant key to one’s survival, as well has having buddies to cover you during your travel.
The sooner you get on the road, the less your chances of encountering problems. A few people will recognize the early signs of collapse and get moving out of town long before traffic becomes a problem. Others will recognize the issue within twenty-four hours after the event takes place, and will be on the leading edge of the traffic during the exodus. The majority will not realize the seriousness until it is too late. These people will get caught-up in the traffic jam that will rival the exodus of Houston during Hurricane Rita, where I-45 and I-10 were packed full of cars stopped on the highway for 100 miles. Many people ran out of gas on the side of the road and found themselves without food or water since they had only moved a few miles in four hours.
You may be a well prepared family, but for one reason or another are caught on your heals when a collapse occurs. This leads you to stay put longer than you would have liked, but you have no better tactical choices but to lay low at home or work for a few days before bugging out. You do not want to get caught in a highway traffic jam following a collapse. If you get stuck, you will have to leave most of what you packed into your vehicle(s) and move out on foot amongst the thousands of ill-prepared people on the roads doing things they would never have considered during normal times.
Those who are forced to wait out the initial exodus and are moving out of urban areas several days or weeks after the collapse will have a higher probability of coming in contact with an expedient ambush roadblock, both in the city and on rural roads outside of small towns. An expedient ambush roadblock is one set-up in haste with readily available materials and personnel. There will be plenty of desperate people who were caught unprepared for such an event; their lack of morals and innate nature to survive will drive them to take from others, with deadly force if necessary. It is your job to protect your family and yourself from these threats, especially when on the move.
While traveling in a vehicle on the roads, you may encounter various types of roadblocks or ambush points. Some may be fairly elaborate, while others may be quite simple. All are equally deadly. The primary tactic you will need to thread your way safely through one of these expedient ambush roadblocks is what I call R.O.C.S.: Recognition, Observation, Covering Fire, and Speed.
Recognition:
Recognizing that something you see ahead is a potential ambush site is the first key to success. An ambush site can appear as a traffic accident (as illustrated in Patriots), a fallen tree near or on the road, abandoned/broken down vehicles, anything blocking all or part of the road, detours, refugees, high ground on one or both sides of the road, bridges, and anything that looks like it does not belong on, or near, a road. These are the types of expedient ambush sites that someone may quickly create in the days following a societal collapse. It is up to whomever is leading, to recognize that a potential exists and to move into the observation phase.
Observation:
Once you recognize a likely ambush point (LAP), you have two choices: divert your course and completely avoid the circumstance, or observe and evaluate the site. You can either stop well short of the potential ambush point and observe through a scope or binoculars, or have a passenger continue to observe while on the move. Observation is a form of Intel. Look for signs of movement, or things that seem out of place. Reverse what you see and put yourself in the place of the ambusher. Where would you hide? How would you set it up? How many people would you need to pull off an ambush? What weapons would you use? What tactics would you employ? What is your end game?
At this point, you need to determine if what you see is worth the risk of approach or if you need to turn around and find a different route (if possible). Anyone traveling with you should also evaluate the situation and help with risk assessment. Once a decision is made to approach and pass the observed site, cover[ing fire] is needed.
Covering Fire:
This is a two or more person/vehicle job. This means that if it is just you, your wife and the kids, that you need to move out of town in two vehicles. Hopefully you have friends traveling with you to a new location who also have a vehicle and weapons. For [over watching] cover[ing fire] during the operation, the lead vehicle stops at a distance from the LAP that is within the range of the weapon being employed. For most weapon platforms a good distance is 100-300 yards. This ensures accurate shots and plenty of ballistic energy. The lead vehicle should place their vehicle at a 45-degree angle to the direction of travel and the weapon system should then be employed across the hood so that the engine block provides a [limited] ballistic shield for those person(s) providing cover[ing fire].
The trailing vehicles should move past the lead vehicle with Speed. Once beyond the LAP, those vehicles stop and provide cover for the other vehicle(s) yet to pass through the site. Again, the vehicles that have already passed the LAP should stop within range of the weapon(s) being employed and turn their vehicles 45-degrees to the road and take personal cover behind the engine, covering the passage of the trailing vehicles.
[JWR Adds: The concept of covering fire is actually better termed suppressive fire. The term “cover”, properly, only applies to barriers that provide ballistic protection to those behind them. So “covering fire” does not provide cover, nor concealment, only suppression!]
Speed:
Passing through the LAP with adequate speed, and setting up a covering position on the far side for the trailing vehicles as fast as possible is key to minimizing exposure for all concerned. You do not want to drive so fast that you could lose control of your vehicle if you suddenly had to swerve or take significant evasive action.
Having short-range communications for these types of situations is also a smart idea. This can be done with CB radios, or inexpensive GMRS/eXRS two-way radios. Radios will be especially helpful during nighttime operations of this type. When the lead vehicle can communicate to trailing vehicle(s) that there is a LAP ahead, this can start a desired chain reaction that can significantly increase the odds of surviving one of these situations. Communications can also be an aid when the lead vehicle passes an unseen ambush point and can radio a warning to following vehicles, which can immediately render covering fire and/or take evasive actions.
The following is a fictitious scenario using all of the aforementioned, with three families in three vehicles approaching a potential ambush site seen from one mile away. The cars are traveling 200 yards apart. (After the SHTF, when traveling by foot or vehicle, travel should always be conducted in tactical columns, where a specified distance is maintained between people or vehicles. Staying too close together and/or tailgating are unacceptable risks after SHTF, when traveling.)
Lead vehicle (vehicle 1): “LAP ahead, one mile”
Trailing vehicles stop in place, while vehicle 1 moves forward another 1/2-mile and evaluates the LAP. The lead vehicle stops and uses 10×50 binoculars to scan the area. No movement is noticed, but it looks like a large tree was dropped across one lane of the highway. The base is obviously recently cut, and there are no other dead trees nearby. The leaves still have a greenish tint and have not yet browned, but are wilted.
Lead vehicle radios the trailing vehicles: “No movement seen, there is a way past the LAP on the opposite shoulder and grass. Watch the tree line on the right side of the road. Lots of dense cover there. We will move ahead to 200 yards and set-up.”
The lead vehicle approaches slowly to within 200 yards while the trailing vehicles move to within ½ mile away. The lead vehicle stops in the road and turns to 45-degrees to the direction of travel and both occupants exit the drivers side and set up across the hood with their AR-10 rifles with ACOG scopes.
Lead vehicle radios the trailing vehicles: “Go!”
The first trailing vehicle (vehicle 2) gets up to speed and approaches the LAP while the lead vehicle continues to scan the LAP through their scopes, ready to fire upon any threat. The vehicle passes the LAP with no problems and goes 200 yards beyond and sets up an over watch position on the other side, careful to orient themselves so as not to fire upon the vehicles on the other side. They are covering with scoped AR-10s scanning the LAP.
Vehicle 2 radios: “We are through and set up. Go!”
While vehicles 1 and 2 maintain covering positions, the last vehicle (vehicle 3) gets up to speed and starts to pass the LAP. As they do so, gunfire erupts from the tree line (in this instance, the ambushers were caught unaware by the first vehicle and were alert when the next one came through.) Vehicles 1 and 2 open fire on the tree line, while the passenger in vehicle 3 opens fire while passing the ambush. Once beyond the ambush point, vehicle 3 sets up 220 yards on the other side of the ambush to the rear and right of vehicle 2, and provides covering fire along with vehicle 2.
Vehicle 3 radios: “We’re set. Covering. No fire from the trees. Go!”
Vehicle 1 remounts and charges through the ambush point with no gunfire coming from the tree line. They drive beyond the other two vehicles and all personnel remount their vehicles and resume their travels.
At this point, it would be wise to find a secure place to stop and evaluate your persons and vehicles. You don’t need to stop all jumbled together, especially if there is more than one person per vehicle and everyone has a radio. Each vehicle stops a couple hundred yards apart and while one person provides cover, the other goes over the vehicle and passengers, looking for trouble.
You would want to check the tires, engine soft points (hoses, belts, etc.) and look for leaks (anti-freeze, fuel, oil, hydraulic fluid, etc.) Be sure to check each other carefully as adrenaline will be high and a person who has been shot or injured may not feel a wound at this point. Address any issues as quickly as possible and continue moving.
Other Considerations
Stopping to evaluate and/or cover a position may not be advisable in some circumstances. You do the best you can at evaluating while on the move, radioing your findings to your travel companions, and then pushing through. This is where speed comes in to play. The faster you can get through the LAP the better your chances of survival. Your passenger (if you have one) helps with navigation, assessing threats, and provides cover during the encounter.
Choosing weapons is always a difficult decision, especially if you are going to be defending your life with them. For situations such as the one presented above, the longer the effective range of the weapon, the further away you can stay from the LAP, increasing your chances of survival. You must also consider that just because you can easily shoot a M1A or even a .50 Barrett, your wife or teenager may not be able to adequately handle such a weapon in a life-or-death cover fire situation. [So a .223, 5.45×39, or 7.62x39mm rifle may be more apropos.]
Having a scope on your weapon will also increase your shot accuracy and your ability to observe the area for movement while your weapon system is employed. We all want to be accurate with open sights at long ranges, but if you are trying to hit the small exposed body part of a person behind cover at 250 meters, it is easier to find the body part to shoot at with a scope. People do not always present themselves as a nice squared-up silhouette like at a shooting range. When your target has taken cover, you may only get to see the top of a head, or part of an arm or leg. Putting a bullet in an extremity might not kill them, but it may take them out of the fight.
For night operations, having some form of night vision technology could become critical. These systems allow you to see through the darkness and into the darkest of shadows. Generation I systems are only adequate to about 50 meters and cost under $200. Generation I+ systems have a little more clarity and cost $300-500. Generation II and II+ systems can now be had for less than $1,000 new, and can be found cheaper from time to time in the used marketplace. These go up to $3,500 depending on features and manufacturer, and have a range from 100 to 200 meters with quite clear optics for the price. Generation III night vision has come down quite a bit and can be had for $3,500-$5,500. Personally, I cannot see enough difference between quality (with the exception of extended recognition range) of the Gen II and Gen III night vision to compel me to spend the extra $2,500+. There is also “Generation IV” night vision, which I know very little about. Prices seem to be in the $4,500-5,500 range. A Gen II, III, or IV night vision monocular could be a life saver, especially if you can get one that comes with an optional weapons mount.
https://survivalblog.com/surviving_an_expedient_ambush/
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Equip yourself for the troubled times ahead: The Tactical Patriot Store
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In the days following a societal collapse, there will be some people who will be on the move from where the problems exist to where they hope safety lies. There can be many reasons why people are on the move, and an equal number of reasons why someone else may wish to stop your progress. Getting on the move and out of a hostile area as early as possible in the wake of a collapse is a significant key to one’s survival, as well has having buddies to cover you during your travel.
The sooner you get on the road, the less your chances of encountering problems. A few people will recognize the early signs of collapse and get moving out of town long before traffic becomes a problem. Others will recognize the issue within twenty-four hours after the event takes place, and will be on the leading edge of the traffic during the exodus. The majority will not realize the seriousness until it is too late. These people will get caught-up in the traffic jam that will rival the exodus of Houston during Hurricane Rita, where I-45 and I-10 were packed full of cars stopped on the highway for 100 miles. Many people ran out of gas on the side of the road and found themselves without food or water since they had only moved a few miles in four hours.
You may be a well prepared family, but for one reason or another are caught on your heals when a collapse occurs. This leads you to stay put longer than you would have liked, but you have no better tactical choices but to lay low at home or work for a few days before bugging out. You do not want to get caught in a highway traffic jam following a collapse. If you get stuck, you will have to leave most of what you packed into your vehicle(s) and move out on foot amongst the thousands of ill-prepared people on the roads doing things they would never have considered during normal times.
Those who are forced to wait out the initial exodus and are moving out of urban areas several days or weeks after the collapse will have a higher probability of coming in contact with an expedient ambush roadblock, both in the city and on rural roads outside of small towns. An expedient ambush roadblock is one set-up in haste with readily available materials and personnel. There will be plenty of desperate people who were caught unprepared for such an event; their lack of morals and innate nature to survive will drive them to take from others, with deadly force if necessary. It is your job to protect your family and yourself from these threats, especially when on the move.
While traveling in a vehicle on the roads, you may encounter various types of roadblocks or ambush points. Some may be fairly elaborate, while others may be quite simple. All are equally deadly. The primary tactic you will need to thread your way safely through one of these expedient ambush roadblocks is what I call R.O.C.S.: Recognition, Observation, Covering Fire, and Speed.
Recognition:
Recognizing that something you see ahead is a potential ambush site is the first key to success. An ambush site can appear as a traffic accident (as illustrated in Patriots), a fallen tree near or on the road, abandoned/broken down vehicles, anything blocking all or part of the road, detours, refugees, high ground on one or both sides of the road, bridges, and anything that looks like it does not belong on, or near, a road. These are the types of expedient ambush sites that someone may quickly create in the days following a societal collapse. It is up to whomever is leading, to recognize that a potential exists and to move into the observation phase.
Observation:
Once you recognize a likely ambush point (LAP), you have two choices: divert your course and completely avoid the circumstance, or observe and evaluate the site. You can either stop well short of the potential ambush point and observe through a scope or binoculars, or have a passenger continue to observe while on the move. Observation is a form of Intel. Look for signs of movement, or things that seem out of place. Reverse what you see and put yourself in the place of the ambusher. Where would you hide? How would you set it up? How many people would you need to pull off an ambush? What weapons would you use? What tactics would you employ? What is your end game?
At this point, you need to determine if what you see is worth the risk of approach or if you need to turn around and find a different route (if possible). Anyone traveling with you should also evaluate the situation and help with risk assessment. Once a decision is made to approach and pass the observed site, cover[ing fire] is needed.
Covering Fire:
This is a two or more person/vehicle job. This means that if it is just you, your wife and the kids, that you need to move out of town in two vehicles. Hopefully you have friends traveling with you to a new location who also have a vehicle and weapons. For [over watching] cover[ing fire] during the operation, the lead vehicle stops at a distance from the LAP that is within the range of the weapon being employed. For most weapon platforms a good distance is 100-300 yards. This ensures accurate shots and plenty of ballistic energy. The lead vehicle should place their vehicle at a 45-degree angle to the direction of travel and the weapon system should then be employed across the hood so that the engine block provides a [limited] ballistic shield for those person(s) providing cover[ing fire].
The trailing vehicles should move past the lead vehicle with Speed. Once beyond the LAP, those vehicles stop and provide cover for the other vehicle(s) yet to pass through the site. Again, the vehicles that have already passed the LAP should stop within range of the weapon(s) being employed and turn their vehicles 45-degrees to the road and take personal cover behind the engine, covering the passage of the trailing vehicles.
[JWR Adds: The concept of covering fire is actually better termed suppressive fire. The term “cover”, properly, only applies to barriers that provide ballistic protection to those behind them. So “covering fire” does not provide cover, nor concealment, only suppression!]
Speed:
Passing through the LAP with adequate speed, and setting up a covering position on the far side for the trailing vehicles as fast as possible is key to minimizing exposure for all concerned. You do not want to drive so fast that you could lose control of your vehicle if you suddenly had to swerve or take significant evasive action.
Having short-range communications for these types of situations is also a smart idea. This can be done with CB radios, or inexpensive GMRS/eXRS two-way radios. Radios will be especially helpful during nighttime operations of this type. When the lead vehicle can communicate to trailing vehicle(s) that there is a LAP ahead, this can start a desired chain reaction that can significantly increase the odds of surviving one of these situations. Communications can also be an aid when the lead vehicle passes an unseen ambush point and can radio a warning to following vehicles, which can immediately render covering fire and/or take evasive actions.
The following is a fictitious scenario using all of the aforementioned, with three families in three vehicles approaching a potential ambush site seen from one mile away. The cars are traveling 200 yards apart. (After the SHTF, when traveling by foot or vehicle, travel should always be conducted in tactical columns, where a specified distance is maintained between people or vehicles. Staying too close together and/or tailgating are unacceptable risks after SHTF, when traveling.)
Lead vehicle (vehicle 1): “LAP ahead, one mile”
Trailing vehicles stop in place, while vehicle 1 moves forward another 1/2-mile and evaluates the LAP. The lead vehicle stops and uses 10×50 binoculars to scan the area. No movement is noticed, but it looks like a large tree was dropped across one lane of the highway. The base is obviously recently cut, and there are no other dead trees nearby. The leaves still have a greenish tint and have not yet browned, but are wilted.
Lead vehicle radios the trailing vehicles: “No movement seen, there is a way past the LAP on the opposite shoulder and grass. Watch the tree line on the right side of the road. Lots of dense cover there. We will move ahead to 200 yards and set-up.”
The lead vehicle approaches slowly to within 200 yards while the trailing vehicles move to within ½ mile away. The lead vehicle stops in the road and turns to 45-degrees to the direction of travel and both occupants exit the drivers side and set up across the hood with their AR-10 rifles with ACOG scopes.
Lead vehicle radios the trailing vehicles: “Go!”
The first trailing vehicle (vehicle 2) gets up to speed and approaches the LAP while the lead vehicle continues to scan the LAP through their scopes, ready to fire upon any threat. The vehicle passes the LAP with no problems and goes 200 yards beyond and sets up an over watch position on the other side, careful to orient themselves so as not to fire upon the vehicles on the other side. They are covering with scoped AR-10s scanning the LAP.
Vehicle 2 radios: “We are through and set up. Go!”
While vehicles 1 and 2 maintain covering positions, the last vehicle (vehicle 3) gets up to speed and starts to pass the LAP. As they do so, gunfire erupts from the tree line (in this instance, the ambushers were caught unaware by the first vehicle and were alert when the next one came through.) Vehicles 1 and 2 open fire on the tree line, while the passenger in vehicle 3 opens fire while passing the ambush. Once beyond the ambush point, vehicle 3 sets up 220 yards on the other side of the ambush to the rear and right of vehicle 2, and provides covering fire along with vehicle 2.
Vehicle 3 radios: “We’re set. Covering. No fire from the trees. Go!”
Vehicle 1 remounts and charges through the ambush point with no gunfire coming from the tree line. They drive beyond the other two vehicles and all personnel remount their vehicles and resume their travels.
At this point, it would be wise to find a secure place to stop and evaluate your persons and vehicles. You don’t need to stop all jumbled together, especially if there is more than one person per vehicle and everyone has a radio. Each vehicle stops a couple hundred yards apart and while one person provides cover, the other goes over the vehicle and passengers, looking for trouble.
You would want to check the tires, engine soft points (hoses, belts, etc.) and look for leaks (anti-freeze, fuel, oil, hydraulic fluid, etc.) Be sure to check each other carefully as adrenaline will be high and a person who has been shot or injured may not feel a wound at this point. Address any issues as quickly as possible and continue moving.
Other Considerations
Stopping to evaluate and/or cover a position may not be advisable in some circumstances. You do the best you can at evaluating while on the move, radioing your findings to your travel companions, and then pushing through. This is where speed comes in to play. The faster you can get through the LAP the better your chances of survival. Your passenger (if you have one) helps with navigation, assessing threats, and provides cover during the encounter.
Choosing weapons is always a difficult decision, especially if you are going to be defending your life with them. For situations such as the one presented above, the longer the effective range of the weapon, the further away you can stay from the LAP, increasing your chances of survival. You must also consider that just because you can easily shoot a M1A or even a .50 Barrett, your wife or teenager may not be able to adequately handle such a weapon in a life-or-death cover fire situation. [So a .223, 5.45×39, or 7.62x39mm rifle may be more apropos.]
Having a scope on your weapon will also increase your shot accuracy and your ability to observe the area for movement while your weapon system is employed. We all want to be accurate with open sights at long ranges, but if you are trying to hit the small exposed body part of a person behind cover at 250 meters, it is easier to find the body part to shoot at with a scope. People do not always present themselves as a nice squared-up silhouette like at a shooting range. When your target has taken cover, you may only get to see the top of a head, or part of an arm or leg. Putting a bullet in an extremity might not kill them, but it may take them out of the fight.
For night operations, having some form of night vision technology could become critical. These systems allow you to see through the darkness and into the darkest of shadows. Generation I systems are only adequate to about 50 meters and cost under $200. Generation I+ systems have a little more clarity and cost $300-500. Generation II and II+ systems can now be had for less than $1,000 new, and can be found cheaper from time to time in the used marketplace. These go up to $3,500 depending on features and manufacturer, and have a range from 100 to 200 meters with quite clear optics for the price. Generation III night vision has come down quite a bit and can be had for $3,500-$5,500. Personally, I cannot see enough difference between quality (with the exception of extended recognition range) of the Gen II and Gen III night vision to compel me to spend the extra $2,500+. There is also “Generation IV” night vision, which I know very little about. Prices seem to be in the $4,500-5,500 range. A Gen II, III, or IV night vision monocular could be a life saver, especially if you can get one that comes with an optional weapons mount.
https://survivalblog.com/surviving_an_expedient_ambush/
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Tuesday, February 2, 2016
Counter Ambush Tactics
Counter Ambush Tactics thanks to The Bunker
Are you an accident just waiting to happen by blindly walking into an ambush, or do you take the tactical “high ground” to avoid such an event?
Rarely do the “bad guys” announce their intended attack upon you. Rather, they lie in wait to seize the element of surprise. They pounce when you are least aware. A burglar creeping through your house won’'t turn on the lights or make unnecessary noise to give you a chance to arm yourself. A mugger won'’t stand in the middle of the sidewalk and risk you taking a detour away from the “fatal funnel.” And, you won'’t find a person about to carjack you leaning up against your car as you approach. Although many violent attacks occur as a result of an ambush, does your training include counter-ambush tactics?
It should. Most martial arts training start with two opponents facing each other and giving the proper salutations. Western boxers come up to each other before a bout and knock gloves together as a sign of good sportsmanship before the first round. Asian based fighters sharply bow or bring their hands together in a Yin Yang fashion then slip into a combative stance. European Fencers salute one another with their naked blades, as do Filipino Kali practitioners. Although this practice is very colorful and rich in tradition it can negatively condition fighters who are in it for purely survival reasons. Subconsciously this practice sends a message to the fighter that there is a preparatory period just prior to combat. To many my statement may sound ludicrous, but ANYTHING we do in training can carry over into actual combat. Let me give you a startling example.
In law enforcement training many Defensive Tactics (hand-to-hand combat) programs use a hard plastic red colored handgun when practicing gun retention techniques, car stops or subject stops (police contact with a person or arrests). The “red guns” are used in place of real firearms to avoid a possible Negligent Discharge (ND). They are red so that at first glance everyone involved in the training knows that they are a training tool and not the real thing. Using real firearms is also a common practice, but it requires weapon safety checks, and marking the barrel with colored tape. The colored guns makes for an overall safer training environment. However, after repeated use of these colored replicas many officers became so conditioned to the red color that on occasion, actors who played the role of the contactee (the person being stopped by the police) pulled out a red wallet or other red object and suddenly found themselves being “shot.” Why? because, the officers associated the color red with a threat. It'’s for this very reason that many agencies paint their training guns black or silver, or buy products that are already colored similar to that of actual firearms.
Rituals in training, salutations before combative encounters, are very much like the conditioning of the red guns. Although innocent at first, they can lock a person into a potentially dangerous behavioral pattern. In this article we will examine training methods that will prepare you for sudden violent ambushes. Before the ambush Throughout my law enforcement career, and even today in my current duties, one of my biggest concerns is walking into an ambush. Just last year an officer in my department was killed in an ambush. A man armed with an AK47 assault rifle waited at a mini market frequented by police officers. When the officer drove up to get a cup of coffee the suspect came out of the store and sprayed the patrol car with bullets. The officer never had a chance to exit his vehicle. He was cut down before he knew what hit him. However, you don'’t have to be wearing a uniform to walk into the center of an ambush. If you'’re not paying attention you can end up walking into a store or a bank and find yourself right in the middle of a robbery as you are doing your errands; many people have.
Whenever you are going up to an ATM machine, inside a bank, airport, or other potential “targets” you should always observe the surroundings as you make your approach. For example, as you walk up to a liquor store you should scan the immediate area for suspicious vehicles. If somebody is in a vehicle nearby the exit with the engine running it could possible be a “getaway car”. Another telltale sign of a crime in progress, or about to occur, is someone “posted” on the inside who is nervously watching the door and parking lot. This person could be a “lookout” for the accomplices inside.
A few years ago, while off duty, my wife and I were about to enter a drug store for some eye infection medication. As we were about to enter through the double doors I noticed a young woman holding the electronic doors open by standing still in the sensor area. At first I thought she was just being polite and holding the doors open for us, but it soon was apparent that she was looking past us and nervously scanning the parking lot. I sensed that something was wrong and grabbed my wife'’s arm to pull her back. Just then two men jumped the store guardrails and were about to run right over the top of us. They had just committed a commercial burglary and were making their escape. Without thinking I pushed my wife aside, sidestepped, and purposely tripped the first suspect with a sweep. The case of beers that the suspect was clutching onto tumbled in front end over end of him on the sidewalk as he skidded to a stop on his palms. The second suspect in hot pursuit leaped over his fallen partner in crime like a clumsy hurdle runner, then turned around to “take care” of me. I pulled my concealed pistol from my pancake holster and ordered him to stop. The surprised attacker, dressed in gang attire, decided that dying for a few beers was not worth it, turned and fled, leaving his accomplices. In the commotion the other two scurried off. I wasn’'t about to stop them without a radio, vest, or back up. Plus, a violent encounter was not worth it for some stolen bottles, and my wife standing next to me. I decided to be a good witness instead. When approaching, or walking through a potential ambush area, always follow the first tactical rule – Stop, Look, Listen. In my example of the drug store incident, the moment I sensed something “unusual” or “out of place” I stopped, I looked, and I only had a split second to decide what I was going to do when the two men came running at me. Had I not been paying attention as I was walking to the entrance of the store the thieves would have plowed me and my wife over.
Whether you’'re in a military unit walking through hostile territory or you are walking through a dark city alley, you should stop, look and listen every few minutes, even if there is no apparent danger. If is quiet, move on. If you hear or see something, prepare yourself. Stop, Look, Listen exercises In the Australian military manual, Patrolling and Tracking, Section 5 No. 74 it reads, “Patrol leaders must try to anticipate where contact with the enemy (ambush) is probable. Action to be taken must be planned and rehearsed before the patrol moves out.” In a martial arts training environment you can do a simple exercise that will help you learn to “anticipate” contact with the “enemy.”
I call this exercise Walking the Gauntlet. It will develop alertness, mobility, and attack. Have several participants line up, spread out evenly, on each side of the room facing inward. Place a student (the trainee) in the middle of the two lines and have him or her walk down the center through the two lines. Prior to conducting the exercise the trainee faces the wall as the instructor selects a couple of attackers on each side of the line. Each trainee that will walk through the Gauntlet will receive a different configuration of attackers. The trainee is then told to turn around and walk through the midst of the participants. The trainee, unaware of who was selected for the attack, cautiously moves through the “crowd” until a noise or aggressive movement from one of the selected attackers catches his or her attention. The trainee quickly defends against the sudden attack. After the appropriate action has been taken against the attacker (be it knife defense training, hand-to-hand, etc.), the trainee returns to the place where the attacked had just occurred, and picks up where they left off to walk the rest of the Gauntlet.
I do this exercise often to prepare police officers for walking through agitated crowds, such as parties, labor strikes, bars, etc. Not everyone in a crowd is going to jump you, but you have to be prepared for those few who might. It makes for a very nervous trainee, but it helps them get use to possible ambushes. Attack the attacker In an ambush the ambusher has the tactical advantage. Whether it’s a military operation or a crook waiting to jump you, the ambusher will have done their homework prior to the attack; they will have studied the terrain in which you will pass, note the fields of fire and observation, cover, concealment, obstacles, and avenues of approach and withdrawal. Then, when you come walking into the “killing zone” the attack is launched. In the case of an attempted rape, robbery, or other criminal assault the ambush will be what we call a “near ambush.” In other words, the attack is right on top of you, as opposed to a “far ambush” such as a sniper attack. In a near assault the US military teaches its personnel to attack the enemy if caught in an ambush. By doing an immediate action drill, suddenly counterattacking the enemy even under concentrated close-range fire, moves you out of the killing zone, and prevents other ambushers from closing in on you.
Although each incident must be weighed separately, most criminals expect their victims to comply when faced with the threat of violence or with violence itself. Whenever you submit to a criminal you can never know the outcome. You are at the mercy of the criminal. Although fighting back can get you hurt, a sudden violent counterattack may catch the attacker off guard affording you the opportunity to move out of the “killing zone.” In any ambush the natural instinct is to take cover and save your skin. However, that’'s exactly what the enemy is hoping for and picks you off as you cower in a defensive position. For survival, sometimes you must go opposite your instincts and meet the danger head on.
As the famous Chinese guerilla fighter, Mao Tse-tung, once said, “In every apparent disadvantage, some advantage is to be found.” When I am training correctional personnel how to survive a jail or prison riot, I purposely put them at a disadvantage in order for them to find some advantage. I have an exercise where I simulate a worst-case scenario – a group of hostile inmates have blocked the escape route for the correction staff. The natural tendency is for officers to separate from one another and push directly to the exit or to huddle in a corner and fight defensively. However, these methods are almost always doomed to failure. The proper tactic is to stick together and follow a wall so the inmates cannot come up from behind. In order to have a chance of getting out they have to move together as a group and violently push through. To do the exercise I usually put five officers on one side of a room (fitted with protective gear) and seven “inmates” (also geared up) on the other side of the room blocking the exit. The goal of the exercise is to move as a team and get all five officers past the inmates and out the door. Students learn very quickly that if they do not push for the door and attack the inmates with what the Marines call “violence of action,” they never make it to safety. Of course this exercise can carry over into civilian applications, such as training your family to stick together and push through as a unit. Think like the crook Of course, to outsmart an ambusher you have to think like one. When you walk anywhere, especially high-risk areas, you should always ask yourself these questions:
1. Where would someone most likely be hiding?
2. Should an attack occur where are my avenues of escape?
3. What would the best tactics be – counterattack, submit, run?
A good exercise to run, in order to sharpen your reaction skills in sudden ambush situations, is an exercise I named Door number 1, 2 or 3. Stack cardboard boxes up vertically to create a few “walls” the attacker can hide behind, or hang a few sheets of black painters plastic from the ceiling to the floor. As the trainee makes their way from one end of the room to the other, the attacker lies in wait behind one of the walls. When the trainee comes within range, the attacker, or attackers (it’'s good to sometimes have multiple attackers) launch an attack; be it a hold-up, knife attack, a fist fight, or whatever other realistic simulation you can come up with.
The trainee will soon learn some valuable lessons in avoiding, or reducing the consequences of an ambush:
1. When turning corners, make wide turns to give more reaction time.
2. Use “noise discipline” (don'’t make noise) as you approach a hostile area, so the bad guy can’'t hear you coming.
3. Anticipate likely hiding areas that an attacker may take.
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Are you an accident just waiting to happen by blindly walking into an ambush, or do you take the tactical “high ground” to avoid such an event?
Rarely do the “bad guys” announce their intended attack upon you. Rather, they lie in wait to seize the element of surprise. They pounce when you are least aware. A burglar creeping through your house won’'t turn on the lights or make unnecessary noise to give you a chance to arm yourself. A mugger won'’t stand in the middle of the sidewalk and risk you taking a detour away from the “fatal funnel.” And, you won'’t find a person about to carjack you leaning up against your car as you approach. Although many violent attacks occur as a result of an ambush, does your training include counter-ambush tactics?
It should. Most martial arts training start with two opponents facing each other and giving the proper salutations. Western boxers come up to each other before a bout and knock gloves together as a sign of good sportsmanship before the first round. Asian based fighters sharply bow or bring their hands together in a Yin Yang fashion then slip into a combative stance. European Fencers salute one another with their naked blades, as do Filipino Kali practitioners. Although this practice is very colorful and rich in tradition it can negatively condition fighters who are in it for purely survival reasons. Subconsciously this practice sends a message to the fighter that there is a preparatory period just prior to combat. To many my statement may sound ludicrous, but ANYTHING we do in training can carry over into actual combat. Let me give you a startling example.
In law enforcement training many Defensive Tactics (hand-to-hand combat) programs use a hard plastic red colored handgun when practicing gun retention techniques, car stops or subject stops (police contact with a person or arrests). The “red guns” are used in place of real firearms to avoid a possible Negligent Discharge (ND). They are red so that at first glance everyone involved in the training knows that they are a training tool and not the real thing. Using real firearms is also a common practice, but it requires weapon safety checks, and marking the barrel with colored tape. The colored guns makes for an overall safer training environment. However, after repeated use of these colored replicas many officers became so conditioned to the red color that on occasion, actors who played the role of the contactee (the person being stopped by the police) pulled out a red wallet or other red object and suddenly found themselves being “shot.” Why? because, the officers associated the color red with a threat. It'’s for this very reason that many agencies paint their training guns black or silver, or buy products that are already colored similar to that of actual firearms.
Rituals in training, salutations before combative encounters, are very much like the conditioning of the red guns. Although innocent at first, they can lock a person into a potentially dangerous behavioral pattern. In this article we will examine training methods that will prepare you for sudden violent ambushes. Before the ambush Throughout my law enforcement career, and even today in my current duties, one of my biggest concerns is walking into an ambush. Just last year an officer in my department was killed in an ambush. A man armed with an AK47 assault rifle waited at a mini market frequented by police officers. When the officer drove up to get a cup of coffee the suspect came out of the store and sprayed the patrol car with bullets. The officer never had a chance to exit his vehicle. He was cut down before he knew what hit him. However, you don'’t have to be wearing a uniform to walk into the center of an ambush. If you'’re not paying attention you can end up walking into a store or a bank and find yourself right in the middle of a robbery as you are doing your errands; many people have.
Whenever you are going up to an ATM machine, inside a bank, airport, or other potential “targets” you should always observe the surroundings as you make your approach. For example, as you walk up to a liquor store you should scan the immediate area for suspicious vehicles. If somebody is in a vehicle nearby the exit with the engine running it could possible be a “getaway car”. Another telltale sign of a crime in progress, or about to occur, is someone “posted” on the inside who is nervously watching the door and parking lot. This person could be a “lookout” for the accomplices inside.
A few years ago, while off duty, my wife and I were about to enter a drug store for some eye infection medication. As we were about to enter through the double doors I noticed a young woman holding the electronic doors open by standing still in the sensor area. At first I thought she was just being polite and holding the doors open for us, but it soon was apparent that she was looking past us and nervously scanning the parking lot. I sensed that something was wrong and grabbed my wife'’s arm to pull her back. Just then two men jumped the store guardrails and were about to run right over the top of us. They had just committed a commercial burglary and were making their escape. Without thinking I pushed my wife aside, sidestepped, and purposely tripped the first suspect with a sweep. The case of beers that the suspect was clutching onto tumbled in front end over end of him on the sidewalk as he skidded to a stop on his palms. The second suspect in hot pursuit leaped over his fallen partner in crime like a clumsy hurdle runner, then turned around to “take care” of me. I pulled my concealed pistol from my pancake holster and ordered him to stop. The surprised attacker, dressed in gang attire, decided that dying for a few beers was not worth it, turned and fled, leaving his accomplices. In the commotion the other two scurried off. I wasn’'t about to stop them without a radio, vest, or back up. Plus, a violent encounter was not worth it for some stolen bottles, and my wife standing next to me. I decided to be a good witness instead. When approaching, or walking through a potential ambush area, always follow the first tactical rule – Stop, Look, Listen. In my example of the drug store incident, the moment I sensed something “unusual” or “out of place” I stopped, I looked, and I only had a split second to decide what I was going to do when the two men came running at me. Had I not been paying attention as I was walking to the entrance of the store the thieves would have plowed me and my wife over.
Whether you’'re in a military unit walking through hostile territory or you are walking through a dark city alley, you should stop, look and listen every few minutes, even if there is no apparent danger. If is quiet, move on. If you hear or see something, prepare yourself. Stop, Look, Listen exercises In the Australian military manual, Patrolling and Tracking, Section 5 No. 74 it reads, “Patrol leaders must try to anticipate where contact with the enemy (ambush) is probable. Action to be taken must be planned and rehearsed before the patrol moves out.” In a martial arts training environment you can do a simple exercise that will help you learn to “anticipate” contact with the “enemy.”
I call this exercise Walking the Gauntlet. It will develop alertness, mobility, and attack. Have several participants line up, spread out evenly, on each side of the room facing inward. Place a student (the trainee) in the middle of the two lines and have him or her walk down the center through the two lines. Prior to conducting the exercise the trainee faces the wall as the instructor selects a couple of attackers on each side of the line. Each trainee that will walk through the Gauntlet will receive a different configuration of attackers. The trainee is then told to turn around and walk through the midst of the participants. The trainee, unaware of who was selected for the attack, cautiously moves through the “crowd” until a noise or aggressive movement from one of the selected attackers catches his or her attention. The trainee quickly defends against the sudden attack. After the appropriate action has been taken against the attacker (be it knife defense training, hand-to-hand, etc.), the trainee returns to the place where the attacked had just occurred, and picks up where they left off to walk the rest of the Gauntlet.
I do this exercise often to prepare police officers for walking through agitated crowds, such as parties, labor strikes, bars, etc. Not everyone in a crowd is going to jump you, but you have to be prepared for those few who might. It makes for a very nervous trainee, but it helps them get use to possible ambushes. Attack the attacker In an ambush the ambusher has the tactical advantage. Whether it’s a military operation or a crook waiting to jump you, the ambusher will have done their homework prior to the attack; they will have studied the terrain in which you will pass, note the fields of fire and observation, cover, concealment, obstacles, and avenues of approach and withdrawal. Then, when you come walking into the “killing zone” the attack is launched. In the case of an attempted rape, robbery, or other criminal assault the ambush will be what we call a “near ambush.” In other words, the attack is right on top of you, as opposed to a “far ambush” such as a sniper attack. In a near assault the US military teaches its personnel to attack the enemy if caught in an ambush. By doing an immediate action drill, suddenly counterattacking the enemy even under concentrated close-range fire, moves you out of the killing zone, and prevents other ambushers from closing in on you.
Although each incident must be weighed separately, most criminals expect their victims to comply when faced with the threat of violence or with violence itself. Whenever you submit to a criminal you can never know the outcome. You are at the mercy of the criminal. Although fighting back can get you hurt, a sudden violent counterattack may catch the attacker off guard affording you the opportunity to move out of the “killing zone.” In any ambush the natural instinct is to take cover and save your skin. However, that’'s exactly what the enemy is hoping for and picks you off as you cower in a defensive position. For survival, sometimes you must go opposite your instincts and meet the danger head on.
As the famous Chinese guerilla fighter, Mao Tse-tung, once said, “In every apparent disadvantage, some advantage is to be found.” When I am training correctional personnel how to survive a jail or prison riot, I purposely put them at a disadvantage in order for them to find some advantage. I have an exercise where I simulate a worst-case scenario – a group of hostile inmates have blocked the escape route for the correction staff. The natural tendency is for officers to separate from one another and push directly to the exit or to huddle in a corner and fight defensively. However, these methods are almost always doomed to failure. The proper tactic is to stick together and follow a wall so the inmates cannot come up from behind. In order to have a chance of getting out they have to move together as a group and violently push through. To do the exercise I usually put five officers on one side of a room (fitted with protective gear) and seven “inmates” (also geared up) on the other side of the room blocking the exit. The goal of the exercise is to move as a team and get all five officers past the inmates and out the door. Students learn very quickly that if they do not push for the door and attack the inmates with what the Marines call “violence of action,” they never make it to safety. Of course this exercise can carry over into civilian applications, such as training your family to stick together and push through as a unit. Think like the crook Of course, to outsmart an ambusher you have to think like one. When you walk anywhere, especially high-risk areas, you should always ask yourself these questions:
1. Where would someone most likely be hiding?
2. Should an attack occur where are my avenues of escape?
3. What would the best tactics be – counterattack, submit, run?
A good exercise to run, in order to sharpen your reaction skills in sudden ambush situations, is an exercise I named Door number 1, 2 or 3. Stack cardboard boxes up vertically to create a few “walls” the attacker can hide behind, or hang a few sheets of black painters plastic from the ceiling to the floor. As the trainee makes their way from one end of the room to the other, the attacker lies in wait behind one of the walls. When the trainee comes within range, the attacker, or attackers (it’'s good to sometimes have multiple attackers) launch an attack; be it a hold-up, knife attack, a fist fight, or whatever other realistic simulation you can come up with.
The trainee will soon learn some valuable lessons in avoiding, or reducing the consequences of an ambush:
1. When turning corners, make wide turns to give more reaction time.
2. Use “noise discipline” (don'’t make noise) as you approach a hostile area, so the bad guy can’'t hear you coming.
3. Anticipate likely hiding areas that an attacker may take.
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Monday, December 21, 2015
Contact from Multiple Firing Points
I noticed this article by Max and thought it would be really good information to pass on to the people that read this blog. I hope you do not mind, but this is an article and video from Max Velocity.
Contact from Multiple Firing Points
Posted by Max Velocity in Tactical Comment, Uncategorized on December 16 2015
I sometimes get questions about Break Contact Drills, and what to do if the contact is from multiple directions. We do practice some scenarios like this on the Combat Patrol (CP) class, which take the drills beyond what we do on the Combat Team Tactics (CTT) Class. There are really two types of break contact drills:
1) Patrol immediate action drills, that happen automatically to the call of contact (direction). These drills are briefed /rehearsed as SOP prior to departing on the patrol.
2) Squad/platoon leader decision to break contact depending on the situation.
In the case of (1), the implementation of the immediate break contact drill does not preclude the leader stepping in and changing the plan once the drill has begun to flow, and in the light of a developing situation. In the case of (2) the drill does not occur until decided upon by the leader, in line with a plan developed as a result of a combat estimate (on the fly). An example would be an attempted hasty attack that becomes bogged due to an incorrect assessment of enemy strength, when a break contact may be called.
Given ‘a video paints a thousand words’ I am posting the video below, which illustrates a number of these points, and shows how a section commander (squad leader) will react to the developing situation. This is not a ‘break contact drill’ per se, it is in fact an attempt to reduce the enemy within the framework of a developing contact. However, you can see illustrated some of the techniques of maneuver and break contact, such as the peel, being put to use to maneuver on the battlefield.
You can see the contact develop from multiple directions and how the section commander (great job by the young leader) maneuvers his section (squad) as the situation develops. This relies on the training of his men so they all know what he means when he wants them to maneuver. In this way, basic fire and movement drills, such as bounding and peeling, are used to maneuver the squad to various parts of the battlefield both into and out of contact.
The video also gives a general impression of the range, pace and feeling of these types of situations. It is not all 100mph with massive amounts of enemy fire coming at you. There is time to think. The importance is in maintaining momentum by continuing suppressive fire as you maneuver. I often stress one of the hardest things to do is locate the enemy. You see this in the video, in particular where new firing points open up. You cannot suppress until you can locate, and then put accurate fire down onto the enemy to change his behavior (suppress him).
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Click here for all your prepping/tactical needs: The Tactical Patriot Store
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Contact from Multiple Firing Points
Posted by Max Velocity in Tactical Comment, Uncategorized on December 16 2015
I sometimes get questions about Break Contact Drills, and what to do if the contact is from multiple directions. We do practice some scenarios like this on the Combat Patrol (CP) class, which take the drills beyond what we do on the Combat Team Tactics (CTT) Class. There are really two types of break contact drills:
1) Patrol immediate action drills, that happen automatically to the call of contact (direction). These drills are briefed /rehearsed as SOP prior to departing on the patrol.
2) Squad/platoon leader decision to break contact depending on the situation.
In the case of (1), the implementation of the immediate break contact drill does not preclude the leader stepping in and changing the plan once the drill has begun to flow, and in the light of a developing situation. In the case of (2) the drill does not occur until decided upon by the leader, in line with a plan developed as a result of a combat estimate (on the fly). An example would be an attempted hasty attack that becomes bogged due to an incorrect assessment of enemy strength, when a break contact may be called.
Given ‘a video paints a thousand words’ I am posting the video below, which illustrates a number of these points, and shows how a section commander (squad leader) will react to the developing situation. This is not a ‘break contact drill’ per se, it is in fact an attempt to reduce the enemy within the framework of a developing contact. However, you can see illustrated some of the techniques of maneuver and break contact, such as the peel, being put to use to maneuver on the battlefield.
You can see the contact develop from multiple directions and how the section commander (great job by the young leader) maneuvers his section (squad) as the situation develops. This relies on the training of his men so they all know what he means when he wants them to maneuver. In this way, basic fire and movement drills, such as bounding and peeling, are used to maneuver the squad to various parts of the battlefield both into and out of contact.
The video also gives a general impression of the range, pace and feeling of these types of situations. It is not all 100mph with massive amounts of enemy fire coming at you. There is time to think. The importance is in maintaining momentum by continuing suppressive fire as you maneuver. I often stress one of the hardest things to do is locate the enemy. You see this in the video, in particular where new firing points open up. You cannot suppress until you can locate, and then put accurate fire down onto the enemy to change his behavior (suppress him).
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Click here for all your prepping/tactical needs: The Tactical Patriot Store
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