Page 52 - MERCIAN Eagle 2011

50
Operatioanl Vignette – Utility of Warrior AFV
B Company 3 MERCIAN took over the Armoured Infantry Role from the ROYAL WELSH in February 2011. The RiP for the AI Company is slightly out of sync with the Bde RiP and so our tour extends from the tail end of OP HERRICK 13 into the bulk of Op HERRICK 14. The AI Company was attached to CF LKG and split into
4 locations with a Platoon group in each and a Company Tac element in the 4th. Just one Platoon was attached to the B Company Group which comprised of 2-3 multiples of Light role Infantry mounted in PM.
Warrior has a similar impact on the INS as AH. The appearance of WR in an area or the introduction of it to a contact would see the INS cease fighting, down tools and attempt to extract. They understand the protection WR offers and fear its firepower. At one point a PM Company group in the desert was receiving frequent contacts from SA and IDF. The appearance of just
2 Warrior (on a REME escort task) was enough of a deterrent to overmatch the INS where a Coy Group of Jackal variants was not. INS fear ‘the tanks’.
is in the turret. It allows much greater situational awareness and gives Section Commanders the freedom to operate within Mission Command. For extended
periods dismounted, where multiple Sections were deployed the Commander is better placed amongst the dismounts. Overwatch albeit important does not gain the same understanding of the human terrain that
being dismounted for prolonged periods of engagement does.
Local Nationals (LNs) on the whole do not like Warrior, it seems to hint back
to the days of the USSRs utilisation of Bronegruppe (BRAVO WRs) to crush smaller Kalays. They often expressed their fear that the AFVs would destroy crops and irrigation infrastucture. As such WR was rarely used within a Kalay boundary.
The posture of WR is aggressive which
is somewhat anti-COIN, however the Pashtuns in particular were far more susceptible to believe in the ISAF/GIROA Mission with Warrior parked on a flank. Their local perception of strength doubled. Warrior plays on the traditional passion Afghans have for following the ‘Strongman’, Locals were far more open and friendly when they perceived us to be stronger than the INS.
Warrior provides an excellent communications platform from which to operate, it give great links to higher HQ and carries enough power to
extend operating range
significantly. Frequently
the WR Sgt was utilised
as a relay node for
dismounted operations
into the Green Zone,
the link was essential in
allowing the Coy HQ to
command and control.
At the Platoon level during patrols which used dismounts to hold LN engagement before moving on to another compound the ideal position for the Patrol Commander
Warrior provides an excellent communications platform from which to operate
THE MERCIAN EAGLE