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Fire and movement or fire and manoeuvre is a military tactic
Military tactics

Military tactics are the techniques for using weapons or military units in combination for engaging and defeating an Enemy in battle. Changes in philosophy and technology over time have been reflected in changes to military tactics....
 that uses suppressive fire
Suppressive fire

Suppressive fire is a term used in military science for firing weapons at or in the direction of enemy forces with the primary goal of reducing their ability to defend themselves or return fire, by forcing them to remain under cover....
, or threat thereof, to decrease the enemy's ability to return fire, organization and unit cohesion, and morale
Morale

Morale, also known as esprit de corps when discussing the morale of a group, is an intangible term used for the capacity of people to maintain belief in an institution or a goal, or even in oneself and others....
. The tactic is used by small unit commanders on the modern battlefield. The "movement" part of the action consists of a separate organizational unit moving forward in greater safety afforded by the suppressive fire laid down on the enemy.

and movement works when a military unit suppresses
Suppressive fire

Suppressive fire is a term used in military science for firing weapons at or in the direction of enemy forces with the primary goal of reducing their ability to defend themselves or return fire, by forcing them to remain under cover....
 the enemy with an appropriate level of fire, while at the same time, another military unit advances.






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Encyclopedia


Fire and movement or fire and manoeuvre is a military tactic
Military tactics

Military tactics are the techniques for using weapons or military units in combination for engaging and defeating an Enemy in battle. Changes in philosophy and technology over time have been reflected in changes to military tactics....
 that uses suppressive fire
Suppressive fire

Suppressive fire is a term used in military science for firing weapons at or in the direction of enemy forces with the primary goal of reducing their ability to defend themselves or return fire, by forcing them to remain under cover....
, or threat thereof, to decrease the enemy's ability to return fire, organization and unit cohesion, and morale
Morale

Morale, also known as esprit de corps when discussing the morale of a group, is an intangible term used for the capacity of people to maintain belief in an institution or a goal, or even in oneself and others....
. The tactic is used by small unit commanders on the modern battlefield. The "movement" part of the action consists of a separate organizational unit moving forward in greater safety afforded by the suppressive fire laid down on the enemy.

Overview

Fire and movement works when a military unit suppresses
Suppressive fire

Suppressive fire is a term used in military science for firing weapons at or in the direction of enemy forces with the primary goal of reducing their ability to defend themselves or return fire, by forcing them to remain under cover....
 the enemy with an appropriate level of fire, while at the same time, another military unit advances. This will take the form of two units of whatever size appropriate, be it two soldiers or larger. Enemy suppression can also be achieved with direct and/or indirect fire from combat support units. Artillery
Artillery

Artillery is a military Combat Arms which employs any apparatus, machine, an assortment of tools or instruments, a system or systems used as weapons for the discharge of large projectiles in combat as a major contribution of fire power within the overall military capability of an armed force....
, mortars
Mortar (weapon)

A mortar is a Muzzleloader indirect fire weapon that fires shell at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing Ballistics trajectories. It typically has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
 and armor are a few examples of combat support units often used in fire and movement tactics.

In the United States Military, a basic fire and movement tactic is called overwatch
Overwatch

In modern warfare, overwatch is the state of one small Military unit or military vehicle supporting another unit, while they are executing fire and movement tactics....
. There also exists several variations of overwatch, generally adding further description to more accurately describe the specific maneuver.

A unit fires upon an enemy to distract or suppress them allowing another unit to assault, flank or encircle the enemy. The enemy will be pinned down and can not react, and will be forced to take cover until the flanking unit engages them.

Suppression

Heavy and continuous fire keeps an opponent suppressed and therefore limits the overall firepower of a unit (if a platoon has 30 soldiers, but only 15 are shooting back because the other 15 are being suppressed, that unit's firepower has been reduced by 50%). The fire cuts down on an enemy's intelligence in that they are not able to assess the situation clearly.

Advance

While a base of fire
Base of fire

A base of fire is a military term for a supporting force that provides overwatch and covering fire to other advancing units while they are executing fire and movement tactics....
 is set up, the second unit will advance to cover in front, in the process setting up a new base of fire at this point. After a new base of fire has been set up the first unit will advance, under cover of the new fire base, to a new position and set up another base of fire.

Assault

These actions are repeated until the units have closed upon the enemy position. At this point a unit will close in on the enemy and destroy them. Often throwing grenades, close-quarters combat techniques, and hand-to-hand combat.

See also

  • Bounding Overwatch
    Bounding overwatch

    Bounding overwatch, also known as leapfrogging or simply bounding, is the military Military tactics of alternating movement of coordinated units to allow, if necessary, suppressive fire in support of offensive forward movement or defensive disengagement....
  • Center Peel
    Center Peel

    Center Peel, or simply "Peel" for short is a type of retreat practiced by modern-day infantry. This particular military tactics is more specifically designed for situations where smaller groups of infantry withdraw from an engagement of a much larger force....
  • Four Fs
  • Overwatch
    Overwatch

    In modern warfare, overwatch is the state of one small Military unit or military vehicle supporting another unit, while they are executing fire and movement tactics....