what would "i" do, were i israel, to fully integrate and coordinate "my" armor & tank warfare tactics with "my" infantry support tactics?
why, i would follow the advice of my rather clever friends matt g. and rollie t., that's what. bobcats to the rescue.
the "bobcat" is a rather clever little construction vehicle, smallish so that it can do little excavation jobs, such as clearing away dirt and rocks from building foundations, walls, etc., and so that it can haul little loads of gravel into places a front end loader cannot get to.
they are low to the ground. they have four little wheels, which are all driven, and they steer just like a crawler tractor, by differentiating the drive the wheels on one side of the vehicle or another. they can turn in a pivoting motion in their own length, and they are nimble and will go in just about any terrain.
here is the key.-- they will easily go where any tank will go, and, if necessary, they could very well hide behind a tank, or even a large rock. they would be very nimble in anything the golan heights could offer up, for instance.
and, this is what i would do with the bobcat, in regards to israeli infantry and tank tactics. (hint, it would not involve hauling gravel, though i suppose combat engineers could do that in a pinch.)
were i israel, i would get about a gazillion of the little devils, diesel powered, and i would mount machine guns on them, 50's or 308's as the job called for, and i would equip them with sights just as used in assault/attack helicopters, so that the operator could simply look at the enemy through the optic on his helmet, press a button on the steering wheel/frictions, and unleash all sorts of hell upon his adversary.
i would use these little devils in direct assault upon dug in hezbollah positions, and also use them in infantry support of main battle tank formations engaged in attack. they would not be heavily armored, to maintain speed and agility, but i suppose sitting behind a bit of armor plate would be preferable to walking in the open. related post: http://wintersoldier2008.typepad.com/summer_patriot_winter_sol/2011/11/from-viewers-like-you-a-lesson-in-combined-armor-infantry-warfare-.html . more involved, but, pertinent.
say, two or three of these little devils scurrying around per tank, protecting it from infantry assault and swarm, should prove very effective.
would they replace infantry? hell, no, would be the answer. again, hell no. infantry would be right up there along side them, in fighting vehicles, and on the ground, pounding sand with the boots, where infantry belongs. in vast armada type attacks, the little bobcats could match speed and distance with the tanks, and would go with them, and armed w/ twin 50's and/or tow's, could really help protect the flanks of heavy armor. troops in fighting vehicles could follow.
it would look just like the tank columns entering iraq in the last little dust up, the one that got saddam killed (eventually.)
in slower & tactical battle, they would be invaluable so armed against flanking infantry attack upon the tank columns, and they could prevent infantry from approaching with tows and rocket propelled grenades. given the battle field sights i propose, they would be quite formidable indeed.
they would require infantry support, for the same reason that tanks require infantry support in such situations.
and, i cannot imagine a more formidable weapons system in urban conflict. they would be much more maneuverable (they drive over piles of debris, loose bricks, broken concrete and the like every day all over the world) than a tank, and the weapons they carry much more conducive to killing dug in troops one at a time than any tank: in a city, a tank's cannon has very reduced utility. what, a tank round per hezbollah "warrior?" an absolute waste of capacity, and of very little utility, ultimately. why kill some idiot with a 120mm cannon, when a 5.56mm infantry round will suffice: an infantry man can carry far more "killing" ammo than a tank can.
you take a machine such as i propose, and put it into an urban setting with infantry support, and you go yourself a tactical solution to a whole lot of problems.
you will remember the german multi-barreled gizmo that waltzed into town in the penultimate scenes of "saving private ryan." well, imagine it fast, nimble, and far more capable w/ suitably sized weapons.
now, imagine about 2 or 3 of them per israeli tank, and with coordinated infantry support, and you will have a truly versatile, nimble, adaptable and quite formidable fighting force.
capable of killing lots of arab soldiers, very quickly.
that's the desired goal, is it not?
john jay @ 11.23.2011
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