3rd Battalion S'pore Infantry Regiment

last SG · 2004-09-02T20:08:04+00:00

haha! who here was unlucky enuff to be under Col Sukh? One hell of a tough bastard but nonetheless respectable as hell!! Anyone heard stories abt how he used...

SpecOps87 SG

Well Buddies,read from the newspapers that 3rd Battalion SIR is gonna be converted to be an experimental unit to specialise in Urban Operations.well,can anyone who is currently in service shed some light on this unit?AS I'm very very interested in units which conduct CQB on a frequent basis.Thanks...

Obersturmfuhrer SG

Oh boy. If that is true 3SIR just became the place to avoid posting to.

Icemoon SG

It is always like that .. the best-unit batch ORD liao, CO change liao, then they assign the next batch important tasks .. haiz

PS: The unit was Best Infantry during the most recent SAF Competition.

Obersturmfuhrer SG

Doesn’t matter, as long as it’s urban ops, shun it like the plague.

Temujin SG

Good exposure, there’s a high possibility that the first batch will go to the US to have a go at their (Military Operations on Urbanized Terrain)MOUT facility and train with the US Marines.

SpecOps87 SG

but why do people shun urban ops like the plague?it seems to be very exciting and interesting.

LazerLordz SG

Urban Ops…scenes of friendly fire, surprise RPG attacks, burning hulks of tanks on the side of equally burning buildings, “sniper alley”, urban canyons of buildings providing a foreboding sense of doom, i.e Baghdad and Sarajevo, small assault teams armed with shotguns and breaching explosives, heavy body armor for protection against shrapnel, tank commanders finding themsleves stuck in a cul-de-sac.The list goes on…It’s a challenging battlefront, whoever masters it, shall be a lethal modern army.

antoh SG

well … 6 SIR has even become POI unit

SpecOps87 SG

Wats POI?Anyway,why is it tt SAF does nt issue shotguns for breaching purposes during FIBUA?

LazerLordz SG

POI.Protection of Installation.Meaning they are the SMEs of point and perimeter defence tactics and doctrine for camps and vital industrial complexes.

decepticon25 SG

shotguns are tried once, when A21DF did a FIBUA demonstration in Neo Tiew… anyways its not wise to arm every infantry unit with shotguns to breach doors with. our men would gripe and complain about carrying the shotgun not to mention other section equipment…anyways in SISPEC they teach you how to make door-breaching charge… one pair of SAF green socks, det cord..etc

Obersturmfuhrer SG

Urban operations has always been a murderhole for any infantry operations. The best/worst example is the fiasco at Mogadishu. The enemy can lay an ambush from anywhere and booby-trap anything. Buildings can be ideal campsites for snipers ,sharpshooters, FOs, etc. Your chances of survival are minute compared with jungle operations. Which was why the coalition forces were initially fearful of entering the major cities in GW2.

It may sound exciting but I'm sure you'll change your mind when you realise the possibilities and that the odds are stacked against you.

panzerjager SG

Anyway, no one should ever trust technology - such as that featured in Advanced Combatman or equivalents which allow shooting around corners with sensors attached to the weapon to avoid aiming the conventional butt- on-shoulder method. Should stop all this hype that technology will be your force multiplier when faced against rag-tag or supposed rag-tag enemies.

If the term asymmetric warfare was coined because of the way the guerilla or terroist attempts to offset the superiority of Cold-War era regular military organisations and tactics then the armies should become guerillas and irregular forces themselves, making asymmetic into symmetric, fighting the terrorist on his own turf. Use terrorists' tactics to terrorise the terroists themselves. That's the way to go, don't go the wrong way by adopting and adding ever more sophistication in our infrastructure. Go back into the stone age to fight these stone age barbarians then

Icemoon SG

Erm, I thought every combat unit take turns to become POI?

LazerLordz SG

I think what he meant was perhaps they have moved a notch up an are like the priority unit to do POI duties.Correct me if I'm wrong here. Mr. Green

SpecOps87 SG

Well...I see.But this is what my fren in SISPEC told me.He was saying that in FIBUA,it can be done with plenty of grenades,and ammunition.

And does anyone have any idea will this new specialised unit be issued gear specifically for urban combat or will stick with standard issue?

Just to stray off topic alittle.What is a bangalore torpedo?Can someone post a pic here?My Physics teacher once told me it is used for breaching gaps in concertina wires.Thanx for sharing.

Obersturmfuhrer SG

Long tube of explosives used in breaching obstacles.

meander SG

Looks something like this :

It's exactly what your teacher told you. It can be improvised to clear minefields too if you're desperate.

You shove the long thin metal tube under the con-wire (perpendicular to the direction it's laid), stuff a detonator into 1 end, and run. The bangalore will blow up sideways, destroying the wire.

You can also screw 2 or more bangalores together for thicker/longer con-wire.

More on the bangalore : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangalore_Torpedo

pufferfish_79 SG

[b][quote]Originally posted by SpecOps87:
[b]Well...I see.But this is what my fren in SISPEC told me.He was saying that in FIBUA,it can be done with plenty of grenades,and ammunition.

well my job during my NS was to engage the blue forces during their evaluation and i specialise in FIBUA. ur fren from sispec is trainee or instructor..? but anyway, FIBUA is just a small part of sispec training, just tip of the ice berg training for FIBUA fighting...

While tons of grenades and ammo might make the job easier, it is not as simple as u might think.. The best tactic to fight is to avoid the fight altogether, adapted from SUN TZE BING FA. This is rule number one. Armies will avoid fighting FIBUA as much as they can, as mentioned in earlier posts by others. In actual exercise, the units have no choice but to clear. And i can only tell you that FIBUA did slow them down very significantly... FIBUA is fun... for the defenders... but not for the assault teams... they hated it.... There is plenty of cover and concealment for the defenders..

even With air strikes and arty shelling, the strikerswill not soften up the FIBUA site much.. unless they can really collaspe every thing building.. The rest is textbook example.... As such urban fighting is very prone and exposed to snipper fire,ambush,bobby traps, friendly fire etc, the prize ( the ruins of the FIBUA AREA ) is not worth the heavy casualties to the personnel or troops' morale... unless it has the potential to turn the tide of the war..

LazerLordz SG

Heard of the IDF’s tactics of smashing through internal walls to provide cover for their assault teams?That’s how strenous FIBUA can be.