Air assault operations are not merely aerial movements of soldiers, weapons, and materiel by Army aviation units and must not be viewed as such. They are deliberate, precise, carefully planned, and vigorously executed, combat operations designed to allow friendly forces to strike over an extended distance, over terrain barriers. The goal is to attack the enemy when and where he is most unsuspecting and vulnerable.

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Although air assault, airborne, ranger, and light infantry units are much more suited to the role of air assault than are other types of infantry—all infantrymen and their supporting arms counterparts are prepared to execute air assault operations when the situation dictates. Mechanized infantry within Mech and / or Armor heavy divisions can also exploit the mobility and speed of their organic and supporting helicopters to secure a deep objective in the offense, reinforce a threatened sector in the defense, or to place combat power at a decisive point on the battlefield. They can also use them for deep reconnaissance. Like all other forms of infantry, they must retain proficiency in the conduct of air assault operations. This can be a challenge resource-wise.

Air assault operations are accomplished by employing an air assault task force (AATF). The AATF is a group of integrated forces tailored to the specific mission and under the command of a single headquarters. It may include some or all elements of the combined arms team. The ground or air maneuver commander, designated as the air assault task force commander (AATFC), commands the AATF. The AATFC may combine infantry companies with aviation assets that can be employed singly or in multiples.

So what can you do with an AATF? The answer is a lot. Helicopter mounted infantry can attack the enemy from any direction. They can drop in on the defender’s head (vertical assault) or can place its’ troops on an assailable flank or to the enemies rear. An excellent option is to insert AATF behind the defender then dissipate into the terrain and infiltrate towards the position. All in all, the great advantage of the AATF is that it can attack the enemy from an unanticipated direction.

An AATF can delay a much larger force without becoming decisively engaged by using Landing Zones (LZ’s) and Pick-up Zones (PZ’s) in depth. Troops enabled by the helicopter can withdraw on moment’s notice or fly in and plug a gap in a flash. Remember that executing a delay, whether with air assault troops or not, requires detailed planning and rehearsal. (We will discuss this planning in later articles).

The heliborne task force can fly over or bypass barriers and obstacles enroute to striking objectives in inaccessible areas. The helicopter overcomes terrain and delivers troops to unexpected locations at unexpected times. The AATF can conduct deep attacks and raids beyond the forward line of own troops (FLOT) or line of contact (LC). They can rapidly concentrate, disperse, or redeploy to extend an area of influence.

An AATF makes an excellent reserve force for the higher unit. Air assault reserves are highly agile and responsive, thus allowing commanders to commit a larger portion of his force to action. Reserves are most effective when they are mobile and possess range—air assault delivers both when planned for in depth. They can react rapidly to tactical opportunities and necessities and conduct exploitation and pursuit operations. This ties into the ability of the AATF to rapidly place forces at emergent decisive points as they are recognized on the battlefield.

Air Assault troops can make excellent scouts providing observation, surveillance, or can screen a wide area. They are excellent for rear area combat operations (RACO), reacting to enemy attacks against logistics and ammunition sites or any other ‘soft’ rear area asset. The rear area is full of combat support and service support units that are vital to the success of the forward combat elements. The rear area is large and is not heavily defended. The enemy can hit the rear in any of a number of places. The AATF makes an excellent quick reaction force to respond to these threats.

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