ATP-3-09-42 Fire Support for the Brigade Combat Team Download
Page 181 of 308
Planning and Integrating Fires for BCT Operations 1 March 2016 ATP 3-09.42 6-21 High-value targets. High-payoff target list. Target selection standards. Attack guidance matrix. Targeting synchronization matrix. FIRE SUPPORT TASKS 6-80. A fire support task is a task given to a fire support unit or organization that supports the commander’s scheme of maneuver. A fire support task is an essential element of the fire support plan. The task must be clear, concise, and include the elements of task, purpose, and effect. 6-81. The task states the supported maneuver task and the type(s) of effects the firing unit must provide for that phase of the operation. The task describes what fire support must accomplish to support the BCT operation. The effect identifies the desired result or outcome the delivered fires are to achieve. See ATP 3- 60 and FM 6-0. Using the earlier example of the commander’s guidance for fire support to disrupt the enemy’s ability to observe our breaching operation the FSCOORD and brigade FSO derive the fire support task to be “provide screening and obscuration fires in support of the breaching operation.” As the FSCOORD and brigade FSO war-game that task during planning, they identify an asset to accomplish it, and describe the desired effect to be achieved by accomplishing of that task. 6-82. The purpose states the supported maneuver commander’s purpose and the desired end state for the targeted enemy formation, function, or capability. The purpose describes the why of the fire support task. In this case why is in order to disrupt the enemy’s ability to observe our breaching operation. 6-83. As the BCT staff, FSCOORD, fires cell planners, and targeting officers build the course of action, they determine how best to achieve the commanders desired effects through ethical and proper application of combat power. Fire support planning gives the fire support planners a realistic appraisal of fire support efforts required to support the operation. It serves as a basis for identifying fire support tasks and for preparing the subsequent fire support plan. The BCT staff and fire support planners determine where to find and attack enemy formations to create desired effects. Regardless of when the execution of fire support tasks begins, they are still synchronized with other combined arms tasks. Considering the enemy course of action developed by the S-2 and the detailed intelligence preparation of the battlefield (see ATPs 2-01.3 and 2-19.4), the BCT staff identifies where the enemy formations, functions or capabilities identified by the BCT commander can be found and attacked. The staff graphically portrays these locations using target areas of interest or engagement areas. Certain sub-elements, capabilities, or equipment sets within the formations may be more vulnerable to attack or provide the highest payoff if attacked. These are further identified or refined as high-payoff targets. 6-84. Fire support, information operations, or cyber electromagnetic-related high-payoff targets can be developed inclusively as part of fire support tasks or they can be developed separately as individual fire support, information operations, or cyber electromagnetic activities tasks. An example of how a fire support task for the BCT’s cannon field artillery battalion might be derived from the BCT mission-task statement follows: Example BCT mission task statement. At 2100Z 17 August 20xx (when) 1st BCT (who) delays (what) enemy force A along route RED (where) until 0500Z18 August in order to prevent enemy force A from interfering with the rapid crossing of 51st (U.S.) Infantry Division over the Blue River (why or purpose). 6-85. After being assigned this task, the BCT commander would give the staff planning guidance to include planning guidance for fires: “FSCOORD and brigade FSO…use fires to delay from 2100Z17Aug until 0500Z18Augxx the enemy movement along route RED to prevent enemy forces from interfering with the river crossing”. The FSCOORD and fires cell planners using mission orders then develop tasks to subordinate units such as the BCT’s field artillery battalion.