One last NZ question:

What's your NZ section layout?  How did you maneuver when you move?

I think some of the American doctrine has been built around breakdowns by 2s (so you always have a buddy).

Back in the late cold war, our infantry reserve unit used about a 9-11 man section with 3 with the SAW and the balance with rifles with the notion that we'd generally articulate in 3s (to move, one cover, or two cover, one move). Back then, we had semi-auto FNs (SLRs in Brit parlance) and a heavier FN C2 with a 30 round mag (I think, been a while) for a SAW (which was not anywhere like having the C9 SAW we have now - which is the US M-249 SAW which is belt fed). The only really fun thing about the FN is when we did obstacles, it was sturdy enough that one infanteer could grab the barrel, another the butt, and a third could use it as a step to scale a wall. But in terms of ammo carried, accuracy (esp in standing or kneeling) and being a bit less picky, the C-7 was a great improvement over the FN.

We also did a lot of 'advance to contact' work with the mantra "up-he-sees-me-down" to go from prone to prone in a matter of a few seconds after a small displacement. I understand that kind of went out of British service after the Falklands and Goose Green - too slow. I saw combat videos from Afghanistan and the movement and fire was much tighter and more coordinated (from what I saw). Mind you, back in my day, a flak jacket would stop fragments but not rounds, so you didn't wear one. That made you faster than someone wearing a kevlar vest with front and rear plating today.

On Tue, Jul 28, 2020 at 8:57 PM Rupert Boleyn <xxxxxx@gmail.com> wrote:


On 29Jul2020 0358, xxxxxx@gmail.com wrote:
> Didn't know you kept the 'Lance' Corporal (also Lance Sergeant or not?).
No Lance Sergeants.
>
> Our Master Corporals are above Corporals where I believe the Lance
> Corporal is below.
It is.
>
> Our CWO2s get to wear officer-ish gear (not quite identical) but I
> don't ever recall anyone saying they got 'Sir'd' but honestly I don't
> think I've seen one up close (privates hide form such encounters...
> lol) and so it may be they are.
"Sir", but you don't salute them. Not if you value your hide, anyway.
> Our MasterCorporals were leading our sections with a Corporal helping
> out (section 2ic). The Platoon Lt. and the Platoon Sgt. handled the
> platoon (the Sgt was 2ic and usually stayed with the weap det (heavy
> weapons section)).
That's much the same as us, but we had Corporals as section commanders
and Lance Corporals as section 2IC. In theory, anyway. It wasn't
uncommon for a senior LCpl to be a section commander.

> And then there was the 'national rules of engagement' (or
> non-engagement mostly). Germans, French and Nederlanders were fairly
> casualty averse (due to the big political blowback back home) so they
> got the easier sectors but did not leave the firebases much when
> contact was made with the foes and they didn't pursue. The Canucks,
> US, and Brits would pursue. This got the stay-at-homes the
> tongue-in-cheek name "FOBbits" (Forward Operating Base hobbits
> basically - stay home and comfy and get breakfast, second breakfast,
> elevensies, etc...).
Rules of engagement are famously written by politicians 'back home' and
Brass who never leave their air conditioned rear-area bases, and for
their lack of contact with the reality on the ground.

--
Rupert Boleyn <xxxxxx@gmail.com>

-----
The Traveller Mailing List
Archives at http://archives.simplelists.com/tml
Report problems to xxxxxx@simplelists.com
To unsubscribe from this list please go to
http://www.simplelists.com/confirm.php?u=RDHE7iRpfwqlHvVvWBIhpJZsbTiD5NnL