Here are some examples that fortunately happened in a training environment. First, a group of engineer vehicles sits idly at a coordination point for hours waiting for an escort to take them forward. The escort did not know the requirement. Second, a group of hard charging Soldiers unloads balky rolls of concertina wire on a hot, humid day. The Soldiers would find out later that the location had changed earlier in the day. They were never told. Finally, a convoy of vehicles containing critical barrier material remains parked in the rear support area. A unit preparing their defense is waiting on them, but the convoy commander does not receive his orders until precious hours later,

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These were frustrating events that could have been prevented with some detailed coordination planning. This planning needs to be tracked by watchful eyes when it is being executed on the ground.

The final plan, ready to be implemented

REVIEW
The task of developing an obstacle plan is a challenging task. It is part science, part art and a takes a great deal of thought and insight. It all begins with understanding yourself, the enemy, and the terrain. This analysis sets the conditions for the rest of your planning. From that point, you determine your necessary requirements, your resources available to emplace those requirements, and then you task organize and conduct the vital coordination to make it all happen on the ground. We hope this article has portrayed the amount of work you must conduct to develop a quality obstacle plan. Just think, all this work and we have not even physically emplaced one mine or laid out one roll of wire!

NEXT MONTH
We will conclude our discussion on the defense by sharing some things we have learned over the years on utilizing all your resources in the defense. This includes segments on fire support, smoke, and logistics among others. It is the good commander who gets all his assets into the fight. It is the winning commander who can then get the most out of each asset and can complement the strengths of each.

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