Urban evolution
Last August, the 9th Singapore Division merged with the Infantry
Formation to form 9 Div/Inf.
One of its new tasks was for the Army to experiment with more
efficient ways of operating in an urban environment.
Since December, soldiers of this 'C' Company have been testing out
new equipment suitable for UO.
For example, besides using the camera-mounted remote-controlled
surveillance car to 'see' further to get a clearer picture of the
area of operations, soldiers are experimenting with the use of
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and camera-mounted robots.
Soldiers are also trying out tools like sledgehammers and battering
rams to gain quick access through locked doors and into rooms (To
find out more about some of the equipment currently on trial with 3
SIR, see box story on the right).
Officer Commanding of 'C' Company, CPT Alvin Tan (right), revealed
that new doctrines and operations in an urban landscape were also
being worked out.
He said: "We first started training a few individuals, working out
how soldiers should stand, where they should position themselves
and how to handle their weapons in UO."
"Next, we explored how soldiers should position themselves when
operating in larger groups, from a section, then a platoon, and
finally up to company level."
Within a platoon, soldiers could also be re-structured to form
smaller teams.
CPT Tan rationalised the need for this, explaining that this
configuration was more suitable for UO: "The area of operations is
more confined, and soldiers need to perform concurrent tasks, say
clearing more than one room at a time, to overwhelm the enemy.
"
He added: "Breaking the sections into smaller teams further
empowers each soldier. He takes more ownership in the mission as he
becomes more aware of his role and responsibility. Team dynamics is
definitely enhanced."
In late February, a UO demonstration was put up to showcase some of
the equipment and processes tested. And while CPT Tan stressed that
these processes were still under trial and training was still in
the formative stages, he was excited about these new ways of
operation.
Urban: Complex
According to Commander 9 Div/Chief Infantry Officer, COL Winston
Toh (left), UO poses many challenges but is something the Army
should prepare itself for.
"Urbanisation is occurring rapidly world-wide. In time to come, the
urban terrain will become the conventional terrain and UO becomes
the conventional fight," said COL Toh.
"From past conflicts and even with the current situation in Iraq,
you can see that UO is a very complex operation and soldiers are
faced with far greater challenges."
" In UO, walk through a few unfamiliar alleyways and you can become
lost. With so many walls around, communication signals can also be
unclear," he added.
"In addition, the psychological demands on soldiers are high. The
enemy can pop up from many places, like the window, the roof, even
sewage pipes, so soldiers must be very alert."
"Civilians are also usually present in the theatre of operations.
We do not want to put these innocent people in harm's way. Hence,
soldiers need to positively identify who is the enemy and who is
the civilian," said COL Toh.
CPT Tan said: "While the basics of infantry operation apply, in UO,
you must be enterprising, adept and use what is available in the
landscape to your advantage. So, for instance, soldiers can use
drains to approach the objective."
With so many factors to manage, soldiers must be properly equipped
and organised, to give them greater situational awareness to make
informed decisions.
Hence the experiments that are currently going on in 3 SIR.
COL Toh explained that the aim is for greater situational awareness
that enhances the troops' confidence, preserves forces and reduces
collateral damage.
Fighting in built-up areas (FIBUA) is not new to our soldiers. So
how is that different from UO?
"FIBUA is conducted at a more tactical level, where we
teach soldiers basic drills or procedures to clear a room,"
said COL Toh.
"In UO, it is not just the Infantry's presence. In a UO
battlefield, combined arms are involved, including elements of
intelligence, information operations, communications,
civil-military relations, combat support...It is a much more
complex and integrated operation," he added.
