Infantry battalions to receive artillery assistance crews

A substantial change in the structure of the infantry will be made in the coming year, to increase the effectiveness of IDF attacks.

By YAAKOV LAPPIN
IDF soldiers at a temporary checkpoint in the West Bank [File] (photo credit: REUTERS)
IDF soldiers at a temporary checkpoint in the West Bank [File]
(photo credit: REUTERS)
The Artillery Corps will begin attaching firepower attack and assistance teams to every infantry battalion in the coming year, the IDF said on Wednesday.
The move will constitute a substantial change in the structure of the infantry.
The crews will be responsible for firepower deployment on the battlefield, to increase the effectiveness of attacks.
Their mission will be to boost the firepower capabilities of infantry units.
The teams will be embedded within the battalions, and activate surface- based and air-based fire simultaneously.
The same crew could be responsible for coordinating an artillery gun, an air strike, and a Tamuz guided surface-to-surface missile strike. This will enable the battalion to strike many more targets, the army said.
Lt.-Col. Tzah Moshe, head of doctrine in the Artillery Corps, said the new approach will allow an infantry battalion commander greater flexibility in selecting available firepower, and to destroy more enemy targets.
Today, each battalion has a single officer responsible for all aspects of opening fire. The artillery liaison officer plans, supervises and operates artillery guns and precision guided missiles, and coordinates air strikes from fighter jets and combat helicopters.
One officer must plan targets for air strikes and artillery strikes, and always be on the move, traveling between the battalion commander and intelligence officer to coordinate firepower, a task that stretches his ability to the limit.
In the coming months, a full squad will join each battalion, and will include a team for surface firepower and a team for air strikes. The new crews will take advantage of digital command and control capabilities in the IDF ground forces, which can transmit the location of targets without the need for verbal communications, Lt.-Col. Moshe said.


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