How do real life armies clear cities?

Zipuli · #1 March 17th, 2006, 02:55 PM

Big armies most likely first isolate the area with fast mech forces (enemy cannot retreat/receive support) and then bring in the troops that will take the urban area. Block by block/house by house movement supported by tanks/IFVs and lots of smoke and artillery fired at the defenders. Smaller and more heavily (than normally) armed inf teams then rush the houses and clear them using lots of explosives etc. For support fuel-air-explosives are excellent (Chechnya) and russians have a long tradition in using SPA for fire-support in built up areas to destroy houses. Little by little advance, if the enemy is dug-in well, then more arty, smoke, tank gun fire and so on. The key seems to be to have SUPERIOR firepower against small, isolated enemy positions then sweep/infiltrate using any route possible.

Movement is really slow, but if you rush, then casualties are generally really high (Groznyi 95!)...

Zip

thatguy96 · #2 March 17th, 2006, 03:10 PM

You can read the manuals online. Took about 5 seconds to find them with google:

http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/6453/doctrinea.html

MikeD · #3 March 22nd, 2006, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Zipuli said:
but if you rush, then casualties are generally really high (Groznyi 95!)...

Is there a good Groznyi scenario out there?
I poked through the stuff that comes with the download and did not see any.

MacGalin · #4 March 22nd, 2006, 09:57 AM

There should be one ("Death of the Maikop Brigade" or something like that )somewhere, but it was not compatible with never versions of SPMBT, and caused the game to crash.

serg3d · #5 April 21st, 2006, 08:51 AM

Israel doctrine for urban combat rely on tanks heavily. I remeber I have read that infantry should provide 20 meters "safe area" around tank.

In the second Chechen war, most works seems was done by rekon groups and artillery. Rekons located the enemy and called artillery fire. After that line infantry occupied area with little resistance. Dyring Grozyi assault (second chechen war) city was encircled and TOS-1 ("Buratino") FAE (thermobaric) missiles launchers were used en masse on it. Remnants of unburned explosive in the air from fuel-air rokets caused rumors about chemical weapon.