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FRES 2: The Revenge aka MIV

That it would be possible

But I suppose I’m thinking conventional scenario backs against the wall.

It definitely wouldn’t be possible like for like, you’d be replacing a Armd Inf & Strike Div with a light infantry Div.

Like for like would take years of lead time once the call was sent
The reality mate is 3 Div at the moment is a disparate organisation that can not be considered a functioning Division. In three or four years time it will have the basic building blocks of two Armd Inf Bdes and one or two Strike Bdes.
If you commit them to total conventional war there is a chance the Div will be destroyed as a fighting formation within 24 hours. Not my words this comes from Centre for Historical Analysis and Conflict Research (CHACR), the army's own think tank, which is based at the Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst.

So what would be left? All of the Arty and Engr assets would not cover the requirements of a Div at war and JHF is insufficient before it starts getting shot down.

Day three we look at what we have left, no CR2 Regts, perhaps a couple of Btys of 105 mm Light Guns, 3 Cdo Bde, 16 AA if they weren't in the initial operation and a bunch of light infantry Bdes with precious little Armour or anything else for that matter. Your light div would just be a collection of light infantry Bns, Int, some Sigs, RMP and maybe the odd RLC unit.

Day 4? Screwed.
 
The reality mate is 3 Div at the moment is a disparate organisation that can not be considered a functioning Division. In three or four years time it will have the basic building blocks of two Armd Inf Bdes and one or two Strike Bdes.
If you commit them to total conventional war there is a chance the Div will be destroyed as a fighting formation within 24 hours. Not my words this comes from Centre for Historical Analysis and Conflict Research (CHACR), the army's own think tank, which is based at the Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst.

So what would be left? All of the Arty and Engr assets would not cover the requirements of a Div at war and JHF is insufficient before it starts getting shot down.

Day three we look at what we have left, no CR2 Regts, perhaps a couple of Btys of 105 mm Light Guns, 3 Cdo Bde, 16 AA if they weren't in the initial operation and a bunch of light infantry Bdes with precious little Armour or anything else for that matter. Your light div would just be a collection of light infantry Bns, Int, some Sigs, RMP and maybe the odd RLC unit.

Day 4? Screwed.
That’s my point

So what is the intent with a regenerative follow on Div for NATO?

Is it just a Div HQ ?

Is it a (framework) div HQ with up to a British combat Bde? This is possible under the current plan but a lot of divisional level CS & CSS will have to come from elsewhere.

Or is a fully British only fighting a Div HQ with up to 3 combat Bdes (16 AA, 3 Cdo & a Strike Bdes)? This is possible under the current plan but a lot of divisional level CS & CSS will have to come from elsewhere.
 
That’s my point

So what is the intent with a regenerative follow on Div for NATO?

Is it just a Div HQ ?

Is it a (framework) div HQ with up to a British combat Bde? This is possible under the current plan but a lot of divisional level CS & CSS will have to come from elsewhere.

Or is a fully British only fighting a Div HQ with up to 3 combat Bdes (16 AA, 3 Cdo & a Strike Bdes)? This is possible under the current plan but a lot of divisional level CS & CSS will have to come from elsewhere.
It is all just talk
 
If you commit them to total conventional war there is a chance the Div will be destroyed as a fighting formation within 24 hours.

That's exactly what happened in 1914. Apparently, the number of Staff College qualified officers was only in the hundreds (400ish?) and by Christmas there were rather fewer of them. Now, build a million-man army from scratch, on the back of nearly nothing.

Three years later, it was the most effective combined-arms force that the world had ever seen; that defeated the German Army in the field, and drove them back across their own borders.
 
That's exactly what happened in 1914. Apparently, the number of Staff College qualified officers was only in the hundreds (400ish?) and by Christmas there were rather fewer of them. Now, build a million-man army from scratch, on the back of nearly nothing.

Three years later, it was the most effective combined-arms force that the world had ever seen; that defeated the German Army in the field, and drove them back across their own borders.
They were men, there was an Army's worth of Regular Reservists, an Empire, a million volunteers in 1914 alone and the Territorial Force.

Now we have no troops, few reserves and a bunch of snowflakes.
 
At what point does someone consider the Ruritanian quality to these discussions ? If things went wrong, at least a repeat of Dunkirk could be achieved in a single night.

Though where the replacement kit would come from is likely reserve equipment based in various museums and I wonder if Mons Meg could be put back into service.
 
They were men, there was an Army's worth of Regular Reservists, an Empire, a million volunteers in 1914 alone and the Territorial Force.
.

That's the significant thing
We could get a way with a regular army of 50 000 if we had a fully resourced reserves
It would help the defence industry no end as well constant production owing to the higher numbers of vehicles involved - reducing unit costs thus increasing exportability etc.

It may be time to look at the Regulars and say it cannot do war fighting the mass isn't there that's a TA preserve - Instead the Regulars form cadres, International training teams and a QRF for stabilizing ops ala Mali and accept its going to be 6 months before a Division / Corps sized force can be reconstituted and trained up - the chances are if this needs doing weve introduced conscription so theres going to be little outflow.
 
They were men, there was an Army's worth of Regular Reservists, an Empire, a million volunteers in 1914 alone and the Territorial Force.

So; track the Regular Reserves properly, assume that any existential threat will create your mass of volunteers, and try figuring out exactly how we managed to have a 70,000 TA in the 1990s...

(...perhaps by listening to those who took part in it, rather than those who managed to destroy it?)
 
The reality is that is what one of the intentions of the supposed MDP is. But their approach is we have a cunning plan but we can't recruit enough to execute it so we will use the Regular reserve with no idea how to do that,

As for creating a mass of volunteers forget it
 
That's the significant thing
We could get a way with a regular army of 50 000 if we had a fully resourced reserves
It would help the defence industry no end as well constant production owing to the higher numbers of vehicles involved - reducing unit costs thus increasing exportability etc.

It may be time to look at the Regulars and say it cannot do war fighting the mass isn't there that's a TA preserve - Instead the Regulars form cadres, International training teams and a QRF for stabilizing ops ala Mali and accept its going to be 6 months before a Division / Corps sized force can be reconstituted and trained up - the chances are if this needs doing weve introduced conscription so theres going to be little outflow.
You still need to maintain a sufficient regular force of sufficient size to be able to undertake its tasks at the required level of capability.

If it was me, I’d have the vast majority of the combat Bdes made up of regulars with some reserves. At division level much of the CS & CSS would be Reserve based.

When I say reserves it could be hybrid, so you could have say a MLRS Regt with 1 regular bty and 3 Reserve btys
 
At division level much of the CS & CSS would be Reserve based.

When I say reserves it could be hybrid, so you could have say a MLRS Regt with 1 regular bty and 3 Reserve btys
I have proposed in the past a possible solution to lack of trained reservists. We could offer university or college courses fully funded in return for some full time or part time service with a legal commitment that would be binding on reserve attendance. This can be done voluntarily or compulsory with the caveat that some are going to be unsuitable and will be rejected for military service but could work in their community. The carrot has to be good enough to make the military service worthwhile and the service itself has to be of benefit to nation and individual.
In fact with mandatory education until 18 we could expand AFC and catch these people a bit earlier.
We could use compulsion but to do so and have benefit and not resentment we would need to make sure the individual benefitted from his service.
You could have a better career structure for the reservists and allow them to switch between full and part time contracts to accommodate family life.
Moving some units in part into a reserve isn't insane, it does though need careful consideration.
Every major Unit, say Bn could have a reserve element, a company mixed of former regulars and volunteers with a cadre of regulars. This could allow a fourth rifle company/fourth platoon per company etc or allow for expansion of 1st/2nd Bns on deployment after a suitable beat up. Everything is possible but the Army needs to do the recruiting not crapita.
 
I think its time for a thread on future reserves, this is getting a bit bogged down, thoughts, in Army Reserve or current affairs?
 
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