Re: [SG, DS] Combat Engineers

--- Beth.Fulton@csiro.au wrote:
> G'day,
> 
> Has anyone here played with combat engineers as an
> integral part of their
> games or scenarios (JohnA??). If yes is this via
> them knocking down/ putting
> up obstacles or in mine clearing or tread laying
> across swampy ground etc? 

Yes.  And only obstacle breaching.  You only do mine
clearing (vice breaching.  Breaching is creating a
lane or 3.  Clearing means removing a minefield
completely), obstacle emplacement, and construction
tasks BEFORE the enemy arrives or after they are dead
or gone away.  We're suicidal, but not that suicidal. 
Those tasks are part of scenario setup, not carried
out during the scenario. If an engineer unit is
surprised carrying out those tasks then they stop
doing them long enough to kill the enemy (and then
probably kill the jackasses who were supposed to be
pulling security).
 
> SG-wise can/do combat engineers go on foot and if so
> what kit do they carry
> (i.e. how does it vary compared to "normal" kit)?

Yes.  Light combat engineers tend to operate out of
their HMMWVs almost exclusively during defensive
operations (would you like to carry a couple hundred
land mines in your pack??), but they do carry out
sapper (ie, dismounted--'sapper' has multiple meanings
based on context) missions.  You can do covert
breaches, assault breaches opening foot lanes,
reduction of enemy fortified positions, and MOUT
operations dismounted.

What do we carry?  Depends on the mission.  I've
carried satchel charges, bangalore torpedos, mine
sweepers, mine probes (hint: that old movie trick of
using your bayonet is suicide.	Use titanium or
fiberglass probes.), grappling hooks, demolition
charges, and initiating systems.
 
Not all at once.  In addition to fighting load and
weapons and so forth.

> And saving the dumb a$$ question for last do combat
> engineers = pioneers (I
> should probably have asked Derek this but I only
> thought of it on the way to
> work this morning).

No.

"Combat Engineers" means different things to US and
Commonwealth.  This is why Derek thinks US Engineers
are pogues.  

We have no Pioneers.  Commonwealth has Assault
Pioneers which are infantrymen cross-trained to do
basic combat engineering tasks (demolitions,
breaching, hand emplacement of mines, etc) but have
neither the special equipment nor manpower to do
large-scale missions or the really specialized stuff.

US Combat Engineers are pretty specialized but not as
specialized as pioneers.  We do breaches (covert,
assault, deliberate), obstacle reduction/clearance,
engineer recon (road, bridge, ford, and route),
countermobility (minefields of all sizes, wire, and
other obstacles), and survivability (digging fighting
positions for vehicles and some light construction).

UK-style Engineers are all-singing and all-dancing. 
They do more construction tasks--bridgebuilding,
roadbuilding, bunkers, etc, etc, etc.  They train less
extensively for breaching and such since the pioneers
take up their slack.

The construction-type tasks are done in US by
construction engineers and equipment operators from
the Engineer Brigade of the Corps.

John

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