FM-3-81 Maneuver Enhancement Brigade Download
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Support Area Responsibilities 09 November 2021 FM 3-81 4-11 Critical Asset Security 4-48. Critical asset security is the protection and security of personnel and physical assets or information that is analyzed and deemed essential to the operation and success of the mission and to resources required for protection (ADP 3-37). Critical assets can be people, property, equipment, activities, operations, information, facilities, or materials. For example, important communications facilities and utilities, analyzed through criticality assessments, provide information to prioritize resources while reducing the potential application of resources on lower-priority assets. Stationary weapons systems might be identified as critical to the execution of military operations and, therefore, receive additional protection. The lack of a replacement may cause a critical asset to become a top priority for protection. 4-49. The MEB staff must use criticality, threat vulnerability, and threat probability to prioritize identified critical assets. Once the staff determines which assets are critical for mission success, it recommends protection priorities and establishes a protection prioritization list for the support area (see annex A). The protection prioritization list helps the MEB commander identify or assess assets that require protection prioritization within the support area. Not all assets listed on the protection prioritization list receive continuous protection. Some critical assets only receive protection assets based on available resources. It is the responsibility of the MEB staff to provide the assessment and recommended prioritization list to the commander for approval. The corps and division information operations elements are responsible for integrating and synchronizing information-related capabilities that support and complement critical asset protection against bypassed regular forces, irregular forces, and hybrid threats in the support area. The electronic warfare operations is responsible for synchronizing electronic attack against Level II and Level III threats. Coordination between the information operations/operations security (OPSEC) officers and the signal officer emphasizes electromagnetic signature masking through terrain and directional antenna usage. The protection prioritization list is continuously assessed and revised throughout each phase, transition, or major activity of an operation. See ADP 3-37 for additional information on critical assets and the protection prioritization list. Node Protection 4-50. Command posts and operations centers are often protected through area security techniques that involve the employment of protection and security assets in a layered, integrated, and redundant manner. This can often keep hostile threats at a distance by maximizing the standoff distance from explosive effects, while keeping the protected asset outside the range of enemy or adversary direct-fire weapons and observation. CBRN sensors may be emplaced around critical nodes to provide early warning to friendly forces of incoming enemy CBRN strikes, particularly at static sustainment areas and command and control nodes. High-Risk Personnel Security 4-51. High-risk personnel are personnel who, by their grade, assignment, symbolic value, or relative isolation, are likely to be attractive or accessible terrorist targets (JP 3-26). When units identify a significant risk based on a verified threat from an intelligence source to selected personnel, the local commander has the ability to organize security details from internal resources. Special precautions are taken to ensure the safety and security of these individuals and their family members. Commanders must ensure that any security details are properly trained and equipped and may request additional protective detail support if needed. See ATP 3-39.35 and DODI O-2000.22. Movement Corridor 4-52. A movement corridor is a designated area established to protect and enable ground movement along a route (ADP 3-37). Units establish a movement corridor to set the conditions to protect and enable movement of traffic along a designated surface route. Units conduct synchronized operations within the movement corridor, such as reconnaissance, security, mobility, and information collection for forces that require additional command and control, protection, and support to enable their movement. See ADP 3-37 for additional information on the establishment of a movement corridor.