ADP-3-19 FIRES Warfighting Function Download

Execute Fires Across the Domains 31 July 2019 ADP 3-19 2-3  Rotary-Wing Aircraft. Rotary-wing aircraft employ a variety of weapons. They provide attack, reconnaissance, and terminal guidance for other weapon platforms. Army attack aviation conducts two basic types of attack missions: attacks against enemy forces in close, friendly contact with other Army maneuver forces and attacks against enemy forces out of friendly contact with other Army forces.  UAS. The long endurance of UAS necessary to support their intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions enables them to provide extended support to many types of missions. UAS can participate in supporting close air support (CAS), air interdiction, and other joint fires missions. Specific tasks may include target acquisition and marking, terminal guidance of ordnance, providing precision coordinates for Global Positioning System (GPS)-aided munitions, delivery of onboard precision-guided ordnance, battle damage assessment, signal intelligence, communication data relays, and retargeting such as shoot-look-shoot missions. UAS should be requested, tasked, routed, controlled, and deconflicted in a manner similar to methods used for fixed-winged and rotary-winged manned aircraft, with exceptions made for their unmanned nature (e.g., inability to see and avoid other air traffic). See JP 3-09, JP 3-09.3, and ATP 3-60.2 for additional information on joint missions and UAS integration. Air Force assets, with their inherent speed, range, and precision attack capabilities, are combat multipliers for the ground commander. The destruction of decisive points, forces, and capabilities by striking enemy military targets such as fielded land forces, command and control (C2) nodes, vital logistics, or supporting infrastructure degrades the enemy system and contributes to an enemy incapable of effective resistance. Detailed integration of air and surface capabilities create synergistic effects that are greater than the sum of individual air and surface operations. Ground commanders are the ultimate authority for the use of all supporting fires in their respective operational area. Air operations are not associated with a particular type of aircraft. Each weapons system has unique characteristics that should be considered based on the nature of the threat, targets to be attacked, desired effects, and environmental conditions. Many of the assets used to interdict forces deep in the enemy rear area can also be used to support the close fight. Fighters, bombers, and remotely piloted aircraft/UAS are examples of joint air assets that can achieve desired effects for the supported commander. There are two distinct types of air operations for engaging enemy land forces that are typically coordinated with the ground scheme of maneuver to maximize effects on the enemy.  Air interdiction is defined as “air operations conducted to divert, disrupt, delay, or destroy the enemy’s military surface capabilities before it can be brought to bear effectively against friendly forces, or to otherwise achieve objectives that are conducted at such distances from friendly forces that detailed integration of each air mission with the fire and movement of friendly forces is not required.” (JP 3-03) Air forces employ such weapons as projectiles, missiles, unguided munitions, precision-guided munitions, EW systems, and sensors from airborne platforms in the air interdiction role. Submission of a preplanned air support request allows the request to process from the Army and enter into the joint air tasking cycle. Air interdiction missions can be executed in a number of tactics, techniques, and procedures, or methods to include strike, coordination and reconnaissance, and kill box operations.  CAS is defined as “air action by fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft against hostile targets that are in close proximity to friendly forces and that require detailed integration of each air mission with the fire and movement of those forces.” (JP 3-09.3) Based on threats and the availability of other means of fire support, synchronizing CAS in time, space, and purpose with supported ground forces requires detailed and continuous integration. The supported commander establishes the target priority, effects, and timing of CAS fires. The terminal attack controller either a (joint terminal attack controller or forward air controller (Airborne) is qualified to talk-on CAS aircrew to the target and issue weapons release clearance to attacking aircraft. CAS provides commanders with flexible and responsive fire support. Using CAS, commanders can take full advantage of battlefield opportunities by massing firepower to maintain the momentum of an offensive action or reduce operational and tactical risks. The mobility and speed of aircraft provide commanders with a means to strike the enemy swiftly and unexpectedly. CAS distribution begins with the senior ground forces commander’s inputs to the JFC’s broad air apportionment decision. CAS is tasked to support ground forces based on the preplanned air support requests. During the joint air tasking cycle planners adhere to the apportionment decision by the JFC. The number of air support requests for CAS that are sourced is limited by the JFC air apportionment decision and the joint