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38-411: Traditionally the primary rationale for air force ground forces is for force protection . Aircraft are most vulnerable when on the ground, to offensive counter air operations, and most cannot operate without fixed infrastructure, consumables, and trained personnel. An adversary may hope to achieve air supremacy or protect itself from air attack first by attacking airbases , aircraft and other assets on

76-416: A layered approach is used to deliver a defense in depth. Peacetime doctrine is to maintain the integrity of the perimeter through the use of watch posts and/or remote sensors, and if deemed necessary patrols within the perimeter. In the event of the perimeter being penetrated, heavily armed and mobile fast response units, often using armored vehicles, will attempt to intercept, identify and if necessary suppress

114-423: A martial art he called " defendu ". The aim of defendu was to be as brutally effective as possible, while also being relatively easy for recruits and trainees to learn compared to other martial arts. The method incorporated both less-lethal and lethal fighting tactics, such as point shooting , firearm combat techniques, and the use of more ad hoc weapons such as chairs or table legs. During World War II , Fairbairn

152-756: A police anti-gang unit may be trained in CQB against multiple enemies that may be difficult to identify. Unlike their military counterparts, PTUs, as law enforcement officers, are tasked with ideally apprehending suspects alive; for this reason, they are often trained in arrest procedures, non-lethal takedowns, and standoff negotiation instead of solely combat. They may be equipped with less-lethal weaponry such as tasers , pepper spray , and riot guns to fire tear gas , rubber bullets , plastic bullets , or beanbag rounds . Private security and private military companies may maintain units that are trained in CQB. These teams may be responsible for responding to an incident at

190-493: A room, and using different types of grenades. Police tactical units (PTU) are the primary units that engage in CQB domestically. Situations involving the potential for CQB generally involve threats outside of conventional police capabilities, and thus PTUs are trained, equipped, and organized to handle these situations. Additionally, police action is often within what can be considered "close quarters", so members of PTUs are often well-trained in or already experienced with CQB, to

228-674: A training facility in Scotland, and adopted the program for the training of Allied operatives at Camp X in Ontario, Canada. Applegate published his work in 1943, called Kill or Get Killed . During the war, training was provided to British Commandos , the First Special Service Force , OSS operatives, U.S. Army Rangers , and Marine Raiders . Other military martial arts were later introduced elsewhere, including European Unifight , Chinese sanshou , Soviet sambo , and

266-814: A way, aircraft and personnel are even more vulnerable to ground attacks. To defend against ground attacks, most air forces train certain airmen in basic weapons handling skills and tactics; some train units as infantry . Other than base and asset defence roles, air force ground forces may have other roles such as Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) defence , training other air force personnel in weapon skills and basic ground defence tactics, traditional combat operations, as well as providing leadership to other airmen in base defence roles. In addition to protecting their home bases and dispersals, air force ground forces will also provide force protection when air expeditionary forces are deployed abroad and of airheads during air bridge operations, usually being some of

304-402: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Close combat Close-quarters battle ( CQB ), also called close-quarters combat ( CQC ), is a close combat situation between multiple combatants involving ranged (typically firearm -based) or melee combat. It can occur between military units, law enforcement and criminal elements, and in other similar situations. CQB

342-594: Is the concept of protecting military personnel, family members, civilians, facilities, equipment and operations from threats or hazards in order to preserve operational effectiveness and contribute to mission success. It is used as a doctrine by members of NATO . The concept of force protection was initially created after the Beirut barrack bombings in Lebanon in 1983. With its Cold War focus toward potential adversaries employing large conventional military forces at

380-550: Is typically defined as a short duration, high intensity conflict characterized by sudden violence at close range. Close-quarters battle has occurred since the beginning of warfare, in the form of melee combat, the use of ranged weaponry (such as slings , bows , and muskets ) at close range, and the necessity of bayonets . During World War I , CQB was a significant part of trench warfare , where enemy soldiers would fight in close and narrow quarters in attempts to capture trenches. The origins of modern close-quarters battle lie in

418-932: The Air Base Ground Defense doctrine that informs USAF practice to this day. In a demarcation of combat roles the United States Army was primarily responsible for security outside of airbases, and the Republic of Vietnam Air Force for patrolling the internal perimeter. However, rather than just rely upon static defense , the United States Air Force pioneered the use of remote detection equipment, such as seismic detectors and ground surveillance radar, to detect infiltrators. Rifle squads responded, mounted in heavily armed Cadillac Gage Commando and M113 armored personnel carriers . Force protection Force protection ( FP )

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456-587: The Chief of the Air Staff dated June 29, 1941, Churchill stated he would no longer tolerate the shortcomings of the Royal Air Force (RAF), in which half a million RAF personnel had no combat role. He ordered that all airmen be armed and ready to "fight and die in defence of their airfields" and that "every airfield should be a stronghold of fighting air-ground men, and not the abode of uniformed civilians in

494-1306: The War in Afghanistan , a proper approach to infantry in urban warfare became crucial, and CQB tactics began to be more widely taught to infantry. According to scholar Anthony King, some special forces units express disdain at regular infantry being taught CQB, especially in organizational politics and internal matters such as securing budgets; a unit with CQB training requires expensive equipment and training facilities, using up funding that could be used for other units or purposes. Military uses of close-quarters battle vary by unit type, branch, and mission. Military operations other than war (MOOTW) may involve peacekeeping or riot control . Specialized forces may adapt MOUT tactics to their own needs, such as marine naval boarding teams being trained specifically to search ships and fight CQB within them. Hostage rescue or extraction units may involve even more esoteric adaptations or variations, depending on environments, weapons technology, political considerations, or personnel. Armies that often engage in urban warfare operations may train most of their infantry in basic CQB doctrine as it relates to common tasks such as building entry, clearing

532-414: The 1980 Iranian Embassy siege . CQB tactics soon reached police tactical units and similar paramilitaries , such as American SWAT teams, by the 1980s and 1990s. However, CQB was still not widely taught to regular infantry , as it was considered a hostage rescue tactic. As late as the 1990s, some infantry manuals on urban combat described close-quarters room clearing essentially the same basic way it

570-896: The Israeli kapap and Krav Maga . For a lengthy period following World War II, urban warfare and CQB had barely changed in infantry tactics. Modern firearm CQB tactics were developed in the 1970s as "close-quarters battle" by Western counterterrorist special forces units following the 1972 Munich massacre . The units trained in the aftermath of the massacre, such as the Special Air Service , Delta Force , GSG 9 , GIGN , and Joint Task Force 2 , developed CQB tactics involving firearms to quickly and precisely assault structures while minimizing friendly and hostage casualties; these CQB tactics were shared between these special forces units, who were closely-knit and frequently trained together. The Special Air Service used CQB tactics during

608-625: The Taliban raid on Camp Bastion . To protect against attacks against airbases, and from being overrun, some air forces have a force dispersal doctrine that sees aircraft dispersed to secondary and emergency air bases, such as highway strips , and, as was the case with the Royal Air Force's vertical take off Harriers , dispersals in forest clearings or the Bas 60 and Bas 90 systems of the Swedish Air Force . However, when dispersed in such

646-676: The United States Air Force Security Police were dramatically reduced in scope following the war. Post war the newly established United States Air Force (USAF) saw its primary role as a strategic one. Its base defense doctrine thus was one of security policing. United States involvement in Vietnam, however, brought a real and sustained threat of ground attack. To meet these threats the Phu Cat Air Base Security Forces pioneered

684-467: The advancing army and as such could be expected to encounter enemy combatants during counterattacks or who had not been cleared; because of this, all Luftwaffe personnel were trained to a higher level in infantry skills and tactics than was normal in other air forces of the time. Also because of political considerations German paratroopers, the Fallschirmjäger , were part of the air force. Later in

722-530: The airbase is mapped and prearranged fire plans are put in place to allow patrols to call down rapid and accurate indirect fire from attached mortars and other crew served weapons . The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), one of the two British air arms that was amalgamated to create the RAF, operated an armoured car wing that grew in size to some 20 squadrons. Using at first unarmoured vehicles to pick up downed aircrew and for line of communications security duties, it

760-627: The combat methods pioneered by Assistant Commissioner William E. Fairbairn of the Shanghai Municipal Police , the police force of the Shanghai International Settlement (1854–1943). After the 1925 May Thirtieth Movement , Fairbairn was tasked with developing a dedicated auxiliary squad for riot control and aggressive policing. After absorbing the most appropriate elements from a variety of martial arts experts, Fairbairn condensed these arts into

798-412: The first air force personnel on the ground. Moving towards the special operations spectrum of operations, is assaulting, capturing and securing of airfields for use by one's own aircraft. Not all air forces possess their own ground units and whether or not they do or is sometimes due to other factors such as political considerations and inter-service rivalry . Such units act as a force multiplier allowing

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836-447: The forward nature of their operations, they were expected to help secure, make safe and defend from counterattack the airfields from which they operated. In the face of US air superiority, North Vietnam resorted to attacking the United States Air Force on the ground, with infiltrators striking from both within and outside the perimeter. The United States Air Force Security Police defended against them. First formed during World War II,

874-551: The gliders and transports of the main air landing force. The casualties in the Fallschirmjager were such that they were largely used as ground troops thereafter. To guard against British airfields falling to German paratroops as Maleme had, Winston Churchill demanded that RAF airmen should be trained and equipped to defend themselves against ground attack. In a condemning memo to the Secretary of State for Air and to

912-447: The ground. Such attacks can be made by, for example, aircraft, cruise missiles and short range ballistic missiles. However, an adversary at a numerical, technological or other disadvantage may choose to attempt to disrupt flight operations by aiming to overrun or raid enemy air bases as early as possible, using blitzkrieg like tactics, for example Operation Barbarossa , or through the use of special forces and unconventional attacks, such as

950-633: The hands of the Luftwaffe, and Luftwaffe Flak units were attached to army units to provide ground-based air defence. In addition to self-protection and air defence roles, these Luftwaffe troops, of for example the Flak Corps , were also called upon to use their Flak guns in fire support and anti-armour roles, and it was in the hands of Luftwaffe airmen that the German 88mm gun was first used against tanks. Flying units were also expected to closely follow

988-509: The incursion. If attackers manage to gain entry into the working areas of the airbase, by subterfuge or other means, then the role of air force ground forces is to remove them using close quarter battle . Wartime doctrine, in for example the RAF Regiment and USAF Security Forces, sees the addition of another layer through the use of aggressive patrolling outside the perimeter to deter, detect and destroy would be attackers. The area around

1026-636: The perimeter of the Marines' containment area and detonate the car bombs adjacent to the Marines' billeting areas. Force protection was subsequently implemented throughout the Defense Department (and later adopted by the Coast Guard) to ensure that such a scenario never happened to U.S. forces again. Force protection itself is characterized by changing protective tactics to avoid becoming predictable. This military -related article

1064-448: The point that some PTUs may train military service members in CQB principles such as breaching and room clearing. Police CQB doctrine is often specialized by unit type and mission. Depending on the unit or agency's jurisdiction or scope, PTUs may have different goals with different tactics and technology; for example, prison guards may maintain a unit trained in CQB in compact indoors areas such as cells without using lethal force, while

1102-582: The prime of life protected by detachments of soldiers". Amongst the measures implemented were improvised armoured cars , such as the Armadillo or Bison , and pillboxes , most notably the Pickett-Hamilton fort , which could be raised to block a runway. However, rather than training all airmen as infantry on the German model, the RAF created instead the RAF Regiment. During the planning of

1140-494: The second front which became the invasion of Normandy, it was foreseen that as the allied armies advanced, aircraft operating from airfields in England would be decreasingly effective and that to maintain air cover allied fighter squadrons would need to accompany the advancing divisions. The RAF Commandos were created to service aircraft from newly built or captured airfields. However, they were fully commando trained and because of

1178-904: The secure operation of forward airbases and thereby increasing the availability and responsiveness of aviation assets. Some air forces also possess special forces , who perform roles on land and in marine environments in support of air force operations. These include units and individual personnel who operate independently or, with other military units. The chief missions in such units are combat search and rescue , including rescuing downed aircrews in hostile territory; long-range reconnaissance , direct action and forward air control in support of air to ground operations, for example illuminating targets for attack by laser-guided bombs. Other common roles include military weather forecasting , pathfinding , domestic counter terrorism and hostage rescue missions; capturing airbases, establishing advanced airfields and conducting air traffic control . In most forces

Air force ground forces and special forces - Misplaced Pages Continue

1216-517: The time (e.g., the Soviet Union , etc.), the U.S. military had become complacent and predictable with regard to asymmetric attacks by state and non-state actors employing terrorist and guerrilla methodologies . As a result, during what were ostensibly peacekeeping operations by a U.S. Marine Corps landing force ashore in Lebanon in 1983, two explosives-laden civilian trucks were able to breach

1254-660: The war with Germany facing a manpower shortage, rather than release its personnel to the German Army, Göring chose instead to create the Luftwaffe Field Divisions , using personnel surplus to the needs of flying operations; as cadre for these units, officers and non commissioned officers were transferred from the Flak and paratroop units. One of the great successes of the German forces in World War II

1292-435: The watershed moments for infantry CQB, when U.S. Marines , under pressure to capture the city of Fallujah , Iraq from insurgents , used conventional combined arms and fire support against the city, and lacked proper CQB training and equipment to effectively clear buildings, causing numerous civilian and allied casualties and severely damaging the city. With similar struggles in towns and cities among ABCA Armies during

1330-651: Was described 60 years prior: a grenade being thrown into an enclosed area, followed by an infantry assault with automatic fire. The special forces "monopoly" on CQB was broken following the experiences of urban warfare and close-quarters battles in the 1990s, during the Battle of Mogadishu , the Bosnian War , and the First Chechen War . The First and Second Battles of Fallujah during the Iraq War were

1368-472: Was recruited to train Allied special forces in defendu. During this period, he expanded defendu's lethality for military purposes, calling it the "Silent Killing Close Quarters Combat method"; this became standard combat training for British special forces. He also published a textbook for CQB training called Get Tough . U.S. Army officers Rex Applegate and Anthony Biddle were taught Fairbairn's methods at

1406-726: Was the RNAS which created the Rolls-Royce armoured cars , which it also used to raid and harass the Germans, thus beginning the tradition of RAF armoured car operations. These were then disbanded in 1915 and the vehicles transferred to the British Army. During World War II , Luftwaffe doctrine was to operate as a tactical air force in support of the army providing air defence and close air support against ground targets. Due to political considerations all German air defences were placed in

1444-456: Was the destruction of enemy air forces by over running them on the ground, and the use of airborne forces in advance and in support of ground operations. One of the vulnerabilities of this time was the loss of one's own airfields, which if captured would give the enemy the infrastructure needed to build an air-bridge, during the Battle of Crete the airfields were a key objective for the Germans, and their capture by paratroopers allowed their use by

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