1966 US Army Vietnam War ARMOR ... - Survival Books

WWW.SURVIVALEBOOKS.COMblock-type areas, boundaries are placed along provide for the rapid exploitation of successone side of the street with the street inclusive without halting. Principal streets, rivers, troltoone unit. In areas of semidetached construc- ley lines, and railroad lines are appropriate fortion where observation and movement are less use as phase lines.restrictive, the boundaries may be placed in the e. Checkpoints and Contact Points. Streetalleys or within the blocks so that both sides of corners, buildings, railway crossings, bridges,the street are included in one unit zone.or any easily identifiable feature may be desigb.Objectives. Objectives are specific andlimited. The assignment as objectives of majornated as check or contact points. These points,respectively, improve the reporting of locationsstreet intersections, principal buildings, or and serve as specific points where the comotherreadily identifiable physical features im- mander desires units to make physical contact.proves control. The numbering of the buildings 378. Mission of Mechanized Infantry inalong the route of attack simplifies the assign-Street Fightingment of objectives and reporting. When assigninga street as an objective, always designatethe near side as the objective. If the far side ofa. Location of targets for engagement bytank weapons.the street is assigned, it will be necessary tohold buildings on both sides of the street to seb.Neutralization and destruction of enemyantitank weapons.cure the objective. Units promptly report theirseizure of objectives and continue the attack onc. Assault and reduction of positions andclearance of buildings under the covering fireorder of the next higher commander.of tanks.c. Frontages, Formations, and Zones of Ac- d. Protection of tanks against individual antion.titank measures.(1) Attacking battalions will normally be e. Security and defense of the area onceassigned relatively narrow zones ofcleared.action. The frontages assigned will be 379. Mission of Tanks in Street Fightingdependent on enemy strength, size ofeebuildings, e and resistange antici- a. Neutralization of enemy positions by mapated.Normally,pated. battalion task chinegun fire to allowNormally, a battalionthe mechanized infantrytaskforce will be assigned a frontage offrom three to six blocks which in turn b. Destruction of enemy strongpoints by apwillpermit the assignment of a front- propriate tank fire.age to the attacking company teams c. Destruction of barricades across streets.of one to two blocks. Frontages d. Forcing of entry for infantry into buildassignedsubordinate units must be ings when doorways are blocked by debris, obcommensuratewith their capabilities. stacles, or enemy fire.(2) Formations, although influenced by e. Taking under fire any other targets indifrontagesand zone of action, must cated by the mechanized infantry (fig. 32).f. Establishment of roadblockscades.and barri-provide for reserves. Theseshould beforceswell forward to add momentumto the attack, exploit success,repel counterattacks, and protect theflanks and rear against enemy action.380. Employment of Attached and Support-ing Unitsd. Phase Lines. Phase lines may be em- a. Tanks.ployed to further control by regulating the advanceof attacking forces and delineating(1) Streets and alleys constitute ready-made fire lanes and fixing zones. Vewhere,in the visualization of the commander,hicular traffic is greatly restrictedthe command is expected to pass from oneand canalized and is subject to amphaseof the assault to another. Since phasebush and close-range fire. Tanks arelines are less restrictive than objectives, they at a further disadvantage because205