Universal Concepts - Engaging the enemy - UNITAF Force Manual (FM)




Universal Concepts - Engaging the enemy
The FM outlines our core skills, policies and guides to ensure every member stands ready for the mission ahead.



FM/G71 - Rules of engagement

Guide
FM/BG-348 - Understanding rules of engagement (ROE)
Guide

Rules of engagement (ROE) are directives that dictate how and when military forces can engage in combat. ROE outline conditions for using force, including target identification, self-defence, and proportionality. They are designed to ensure lawful and ethical conduct in military operations, and vary depending on the mission and environment. ROE always take precedence in operational decisions.

Skill
FM/BS-349 - Identify legitimate targets
Skill

Identify targets as legitimate targets before engagement. This is crucial to prevent harm to civilians and ensure adherence to the principles of distinction and proportionality in combat.

Combatants: Individuals who are actively engaged in hostilities or are members of armed forces.

  • Enemy soldiers in uniform not surrendering or wounded
  • Armed militants
  • Persons directly participating in hostilities
  • A person posing an immediate threat (e.g., aiming a weapon) can be considered a combatant
  • Parachuting active airborne infantry

Non-Combatants: Individuals who are not actively participating in hostilities. These are not legitimate targets.

  • Civilians not taking direct part in hostilities
  • Unarmed medical and religious personnel
  • Wounded/surrendering soldiers who are not participating combat in any way, and prisoners of war
  • Parachuting crew from a downed aircraft
Skill
FM/BS-350 - Minimize collateral damage against civilian infrastructure
Skill

Do not cause damage to civilian infrastructure, unless necessary to archieve a military purpose. In general, preserving life should be prioritised over the avoidance of damage, but the destruction must be proportional to the purpose.

Examples:

  • Acceptable situations:
    • Using explosives on a civilian house used as a military HQ
    • Dropping a bomb on an actively engaging enemy tank next to a house
  • Unacceptable situations:
    • Cluster-bombing an enemy-held town
    • Destroying a house to take out a single shooter

FM/G70 - Weapon control states

Guide
FM/BG-335 - Understanding weapon control states
Guide

A weapon control status is a temporary condition set by the Commander of an operation, one state is always in effect. It describes the terms under which elements can engage valid targets. Under normal conditions a rifleman or element would contact report a target and await authorisation to fire. A weapon control status modifies this condition and allows those elements to fire using self authorisation under certain conditions based on target identification criteria. The Commander sets and adjusts the weapon control state based on friendly and enemy disposition and clarity of the overall situation.

A weapon control state is not the same as the Rules of Engagement (ROE) or the Law of armed conflict (LOAC) which always apply.

Skill
FM/BS-351 - Observe the active weapons control state
Skill

"Weapons Red"

  • Engage only if there is an imminent threat to life. 
  • Authorisation is required for all other targets
    • with the exception of immediate life-threatening situations. 
  • Return fire only if absolutely necessary. 
  • This state is typically used when stealth is important.

"Weapons Orange"

  • Return fire only and limit engagements to active threats against you or friendlies. 
  • Disengage if the threat ceases.
  • The most common state.

"Weapons Green"

  • Engage any confirmed enemy target.
  • This state is common in prolonged firefights, emphasising rapid response to enemy threats without the need for authorisation or detailed contact reports for each engagement.

FM/G139 - Fire control

Guide
FM/BG-702 - Type of fire - Point fire
Guide

Point fire is fire using a direct and controlled aim, for the specific purpose of hitting an individual target accurately.

Example:

  • A rifleman takes aim for an enemy combatant he can see in a window, releases controlled, accurate fire with the intended purpose of wounding the enemy
Guide
FM/BG-703 - Type of fire - Area fire
Guide

Area fire is aiming for a group of enemies close together, or an area of concealment that is hiding enemy units, with the intention not to hit any specific individual target, but to hit any target within the area of fire.

Example:

  • A rifleman engages a column of enemy infantry, with the intention of putting enough rounds towards the general location that it is likely to wound several enemy combatants.
  • A pilot, receiving an instruction to engage enemy infantry in a treeline, engages in area fire on that treeline. Despite not being able to see individual targets, the pilot knows they are there, and puts enough fire down in that area that it is likely to cause casualties.
Guide
FM/BG-704 - Type of fire - Suppressive fire
Guide

Suppressive fire is fire where the primary intention is not to hit an enemy target, but to fix them in place and prevent them from returning effective fire, by placing them in the position where if they were to try, they would likely be wounded. If enemy combatants are wounded, this is simply a benefit. Suppressing the enemy can be used for many reasons but the main reasons are; preventing a superior enemy from returning fire, providing the opportunity to get into cover, or keeping the enemy in place whilst friendly units flank them.

Examples:

  • A fireteam suppresses an enemy behind a wall, preventing them from moving without being hit, whilst another fireteam moves to the wall to finish the enemy
  • A pilot, seeing an enemy fixed wing making an attack run, suppresses the enemy by firing towards them as much as possible, causing them to have to disengage.
Guide
FM/BG-706 - Rate of fire - Deliberate
Guide

Deliberate fire is the a rate of fire that, looking to make deliberate and controlled shots towards a target that have a high chance of accuracy despite a slower pace. This is the standard and default rate of fire.

A rough guide for a standard rifleman, would be 1 round per 4 seconds, for a combined total of 1-1.5 round per second per fireteam

Guide
FM/BG-707 - Rate of fire - Rapid
Guide

Rapid fire is a rate of fire that is faster than deliberate in order to increase the volume of rounds towards the enemy, at the expense of accuracy. Often used to achieve suppressing fire, rapid fire is used sparingly, as its higher rate increases ammunition consumption.

A rough guide for a rifleman, is 1 round per second, for a total of 4-6 rounds per second from the fireteam.

Guide
FM/BG-708 - Rate of Fire - Burst
Guide

Burst fire, commonly used with automatic rifles or any rifle with the burst fire setting, achieves a rate much like deliberate fire, but instead of a single round, a burst of 3-5 rounds is fired.

Guide
FM/BG-709 - Fire control order
Guide

A fire control order (FCO) is used by an element leader to direct their element's fire quickly and effectively towards a target.

The acronym for fire control order is: GRIT

  1. GROUP: who is being addressed, "Section", "Fire Team" (Charlie or Delta), "No. 2 Rifleman", etc. 
  2. RANGE: the distance to the target. 
  3. INDICATION: in which direction to look and what to look for. 
  4. TYPE OF FIRE: the type of fire that is required.

Example:

FTL: ‘Green Team. 100m. Enemy infantry, North. Point fire!’

Skill
FM/BS-705 - Engage a target according to the given fire control order
Skill

Engage the target specified in a given fire control order using:

  • the correct type of fire
  • using the correct rate of fire if specified, otherwise using an appropriate rate of fire depending on the target
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