Fighting Light.. what is the problem?

[Themanwho]

Not a factor in British thinking. There is an extremely finite limit on such resources.

Which in itself is an argument for an injection of reality into planning & training, surely? Just because we think we "can't afford wastage" doesn't mean the Abdul or Ivan isn't going to shoot down the drone / blow up the MAN GS / nick all our pack mules.

 

[ugly]

Which in itself is an argument for an injection of reality into planning & training, surely? Just because we think we "can't afford wastage" doesn't mean the Abdul or Ivan isn't going to shoot down the drone / blow up the MAN GS / shag all our pack mules.

Fixed

 

[Themanwho]

Why a big knife? Two is better. A big, light one as a shield, and a short, light one, for attack.

The Fairbairn-Sykes was, in my opinion, the best knife ever made.

Depends what it's being used for. F-S is great for stabbing Fritz, not so good at cutting foliage / opening a can or an ammo crate / whittling a peg for a trip flare, etc. Which task are you more likely to need to do?

Edit: Beaten to it by @Dan Gleebles

 

[Themanwho]

Fixed

Indeed.

 

[Lardbeast]

The FS was the best knife for all those times it was held between the teeth and then used to dispatch enemy sentries…

However, for those rarer occasions when you wanted to hack down brushwood for a shelter, chop logs for firewood or cut up bits of animal for scoff, then a big old, heavy survival knife is the daddy.

And both are shit for cutting biltong. Not a lot out there that does everything well. Small folder for mundane stuff and a bigger camp knife for patrol jobs should do the trick.

KaBar Mule is something that can be used to make someone unhappy at a push but does pretty well cutting 'tong or slicing steak/rope/paracord. Kukri or parang as a bush knife to complement it.

As for aerial resupply, what about some of the old kit like OV-10s to scoot in fast and dump a load before heading home? Down in the weeds may be survivable, GPS to pinpoint a location and fast despatch from a fairly large load bay between the booms. Worth developing some quick offload low level techniques for precision placement and minimal time exposed on a pop up drop and fast exfil, with only a few seconds for the load under canopy or free fall delivery to keep the DZ tight.

 

[Dan Gleebles]

RE: Barmine. Blow a track off and you have a M kill. Get lucky and hit the belly plate you might get a K kill. Bear in mind there were different types of fuses available as well designed to delay and channel the soviet hordes. I suspect the reason guys got stuck with them is there must be millions in storage reaching the end of their shelf life. Cheap option.

As an aside when people have been discussing, mines/booby traps/IEDs the greatest thing you can achieve is awareness in the enemy. It slows them down saps(swidt) morale and makes soldiers frightened to move.

Drift over

No mine pisses you off more(apart from the one you initiate)than the ‘double impulse’ fused jobby.

It takes the second pressure on it to detonate, leaving the first vehicle to roll over and continue deeper into the minefield.

Can’t go forward without risking further strike, can’t retrace your tracks…

 

[Fat POM]

No mine pisses you off more(apart from the one you initiate)than the ‘double impulse’ fused jobby.

It takes the second pressure on it to detonate, leaving the first vehicle to roll over and continue deeper into the minefield.

Can’t go forward without risking further strike, can’t retrace your tracks…

Yep, it was designed to defeat the soviet roller. Roller gave first impulse, track second and Ivan's mineclearing tank is Donald Ducked in your minefield giving lots of static targets for a wealth of AT assets, because obstacles are always covered by fire.

Glad we never had to demonstrate it in real time.

 

[Themanwho]

And both are shit for cutting biltong. Not a lot out there that does everything well. Small folder for mundane stuff and a bigger camp knife for patrol jobs should do the trick.

KaBar Mule is something that can be used to make someone unhappy at a push but does pretty well cutting 'tong or slicing steak/rope/paracord. Kukri or parang as a bush knife to complement it.

Alternatively, keep your kukri sharp enough....

 

[Cold_Collation]

And yes, there is a place for Toms tabbing

Is it Longmoor?

 

[irlsgt]

Different size and different complexity.

Drop a load of 5.56 in flight? No real drama. Drop Pte Scruggins who until that point had a very survivable flesh wound? Entirely different!

Exactly so where you could have previously backloaded casualties, POWs, Int gathered, etc with the personnel/vehicles sent forward now you can’t

 

[Themanwho]

Is it Longmoor?

Nope....

 

[LouisetheSleaz]

Depends what it's being used for. F-S is great for stabbing Fritz, not so good at cutting foliage / opening a can or an ammo crate / whittling a peg for a trip flare, etc. Which task are you more likely to need to do?

Edit: Beaten to it by @Dan Gleebles

Fair points all.

 

[Cold_Collation]

Nope....

View attachment 673473

Oh, Lincolnshire.

 

[Lardbeast]

Alternatively, keep your kukri sharp enough....

View attachment 673468

Bit awkward scooping Ovambo piele out of a tin with it though.

 

[dingerr]

Which in itself is an argument for an injection of reality into planning & training, surely? Just because we think we "can't afford wastage" doesn't mean the Abdul or Ivan isn't going to shoot down the drone / blow up the MAN GS / nick all our pack mules.

When you start thinking like that the British approach is “well we won’t waste the money buying them”. The US approach is probably “buy more”.

 

[Themanwho]

When you start thinking like that the British approach is “well we won’t waste the money buying them”. The US approach is probably “buy more”.

And how's that working? Don't get me wrong, I agree with much of what you say. I just think it's past time we did something about it.

 

[oscar1whisky]

Nope....

View attachment 673473

You could get a truck along there.

 

[smallbrownprivates]

Bit awkward scooping Ovambo piele out of a tin with it though.

That's in part what these are for.
A small knife and a honing blade.
Not always the best quality, though good if kept in good nick.

 

[alfred_the_great]

Given CGS’ speech, we should probably lock this thread for a while.

 

[ugly]

Given CGS’ speech, we should probably lock this thread for a while.

Fair comment, pm me when you think it should reopen