Ch. 4 Describe Environmental Effects on Ops

• Step 2 of the IPOE process identifies significant OE features affecting friendly/threat operations.
• The evaluation begins by analyzing current and projected conditions in the AO and AOI.
• Afterward, staff determines the effects on friendlies and threats.
• For instance, terrain may channelize friendly forces, hindering mutual support, while favoring enemy ambushes.

The "So What"

• The goal of Step 2 is to pinpoint AOI characteristics impacting friendly and threat operations.
• Success means commanders can quickly leverage terrain, weather, and civil factors.
• This helps support the mission during decisive, shaping, and sustaining operations.
• Failure deprives commander of opportunities the OE provides, or threat exploits.
• For example, a threat may use subterranean terrain to maneuver.
• Without awareness, friendly forces may overlook potential threat COAs.

The Process Substeps and Outputs

• Describe how threats affect friendly forces, assessing regular, irregular, and hybrid threats.
• Output is the threat overlay and description table.
• Describe how terrain affects friendly/threat operations, considering OAKOC (observation, avenues, key terrain, obstacles, cover).
• The output is a modified combined obstacle overlay and terrain effects matrix.
• Describe how weather affects friendly/threat operations, including visibility, wind, temp, etc.
• The output is the operational climatology/weather forecast analysis chart, light data, and weather effects matrix.
• Describe how civil considerations affect friendly/threat operations, using ASCOPE characteristics.
• Relevant civil inputs are used to generate situational understanding during step 2 of IPOE.
• Outputs include civil considerations data file, overlays, and assessments.

Describing Threat Effects

• Commanders must know all potential AO/AOI threats, unified or disparate.
• Detailed threat analysis comes in steps 3/4, but defining threat type and capabilities starts in step 2.
• This places the threat in context with other OE variables.
• In combat, regular threats are important, wherever engagement occurs.
• In irregular warfare, civil considerations may outweigh irregular threat importance.
• Hybrid threats in combat may exploit perceived friendly vulnerabilities using regular/irregular threat capabilities.
• This expands threat COA possibilities and impacts friendly decision cycles.

Threat Overlay and Description

• The threat overlay and description focuses threat analysis to help commanders understand the analysis.
• See Chapter 5 for regular, irregular, and hybrid threat details.
• The threat overlay shows the physical location of potential AO/AOI threats.
• It includes identity, size, location, strength, and AO for known threats.
• The overlay should have the date-time group of threat activity, maintained in intelligence files.
• Maintaining the overlay references past threat activity, revealing movement and dispositions.
• During step 4 of IPOE, it determines threat COAs.

Threat Description Table

• It supports the threat overlay by classifying identifiable threats on the overlay.
• It describes each threat's capabilities.
• It identifies locations like the northern coast or international boundaries.
• It describes the capabilities of, for example, special purpose forces, platoon trafficking personnel or riverine infantry.
• It includes additional intel such as, “companies are know to operate down to platoon level”

Terrain Analysis

• Terrain Analysis collects, evaluates, and interprets geographic information on natural and man-made terrain features.
• It also involves the study and interpretation of natural and man-made features to determine their effects on military operations.
• It incorporates the effects of weather/climate.
• Terrain analysis alters terrain effects analysis since changes in the OE may alter terrain effects.
• Analysis is based on military aspects of terrain (OAKOC).
• Two types of terrain: natural and complex.
• Natural terrain focuses on airspace, surface, and subsurface areas.
• Complex terrain also focuses on airspace, surface, and subsurface areas, but it considers internal, external, and subsurface areas.
• Geospatial intelligence cells conduct detailed terrain analysis.
• They are assigned to theater army, corps, division headquarters, and BCTs based on priority.

Addressing Factors

• Cross-country mobility
• Canalization
• LOS impacts on weapon use
• CBRN weapon use
• Communications dead space
• LOCs (transportation, communications, and power)
• Vegetation

Terrain Aspects

• Natural and man-made surface and subsurface areas and materials
• Natural and man-made obstacles
• Significant infrastructure
• Flood zones
• Aircraft and amphibious sites

Observation and Fields of Fire

• Observation is weather/terrain permitting a force to see friendly, enemy, and neutral personnel and systems, and key aspects.
• Commanders assess observation capabilities for electronic and optical LOS surveillance and unaided visual observation.
• The highest terrain normally provides the best observation.
• Soldiers analyze the terrain to find the best LOS to support observation.
• Line of sight is an unobstructed path from a Soldier's weapon, sight, electronic sending/receiving, or recon equipment.
• Two tools for this analysis are intervisibility line and dead space.
• Intervisibility line depicts maximum visibility for a Soldier or system.
• Dead space is where a Soldier/system cannot maintain visibility.

Observation Limitations

• Adverse weather, smoke, time of day, and illumination
• In urban areas, man-made structures and the activity/debris of human activity
• Analysts must also consider surface, subsurface, supersurface, external, and internal areas.
• Threat forces exploit observation advantages forces may not consider
• Threat forces could use buildings protected under rules of engagement
• Threat forces may use subterranean terrain portals to identify friendly movement routes.
• Field of fire is an area weapons can effectively cover from a given position.
• A unit's field of fire relates to their ability to observe.

Fire Evaluation

• Potential engagement areas
• Defensible terrain
• Specific equipment or equipment positions
• Vulnerable force areas
• Visual dead space
• Analysis includes evaluating all direct/indirect fire weapon systems.
• An ideal field of fire for direct fire weapons is an open area with no protection.
• Observation/fields of fire rely on LOSs
• Horizontal LOS is an unobstructed path from a Soldier's instrument.
• Oblique LOS plans ADA system positions and landing/drop zones and forward arming/refueling points.
• Areas vulnerable to threat aerial information collection systems help select friendly battle positions.
• Establishing LOSs and identifying intervisibility lines is critical.

Avenues of Approach (AAs)

• Avenues of approach is a path used by an attacking force to key terrain.
• Identifying AAs is important as all COAs involving maneuver depend on available AAs.
• For offensive, evaluation leads to best AAs to the objective and threat AAs for counterattack.
• For defensive, identify AAs that support threat offensive capabilities.
• AAs consist of mobility corridors through which a force passes to reach its objective Providing ease of movement and dispersion.
• The geospatial team produces terrain mobility corridor visualization products

Mobility Corridor

• Mobility corridor refers to areas relatively free of obstacles where a force will be canalized.
• Military forces capitalize on principles of mass and speed.
• They use unrestricted terrain providing space for breaching/bypassing obstacles.
• Mobility corridor requirements are directly proportional to the force type/mobility being evaluated.
• Military forces, such as mechanized infantry and armored units, have more freedom of movement and maneuver in open areas.
• Dismounted forces are less impacted in wooded areas, where mechanized units would be delayed.
• Geospatial teams create cross-country mobility products corresponding with the element type being employed.

Mobility Category

• Mobility corridors categorized based on force size/type they can accommodate and their likely use.
• A mechanized force uses logistical sustainment.
• A road network corridor is more desirable.
• A dismounted force needs restricted corridors.
• This might include arctic tundra, swamps, jungles, or mountains.
• It may or may not have a road network.
• Due to rate of march and lack of fire power, dismounted forces require a more covered and concealed route for survivability to their objective.

Key Terrain

• Key terrain is an identifiable characteristic that is an advantage for the people controlling.
• In restricted natural terrain, high ground can be key terrain because it dominates an area with good observation and fields of fire.
• In an open/arid environment, a dry riverbed or channel can be key terrain because it offers good cover/concealment.
• In urban areas, infrastructure is considered to be key terrain.
• The command needs to consider the operational and strategic impact on the civil dimension when controlling a bridge.
• Key terrain is assessed by noting the impact either force's control of it has.
• The assessment is aided by evaluating OAKOC (observation, avenues of approach, obstacles, cover, concealment).

Offense

• In the offense, key terrain features are usually forward of friendly dispositions.
• They are often assigned as objectives.
• Adjacent key terrain features may be controlled for continuation of the attack.

Defense

• Key terrain is within/behind the defensive area.
• Terrain with observation over AAs, terrain for defender to cover obstacle by fire, areas along a LOC that affects use of reserves/sustainment operations.

Stability

• Portions of the population, such as political, tribal, or religious groups or leaders.

Obstacles

• An obstacle disrupts/blocks movement and maneuver.

Tactical Effects

• Disrupt: The arrows shows threat advance direction and where threat is slowed.
• Turn: the heel of the arrow is the anchor point and the arrow indicates the turn.
• Fix: The arrow shows threat direction and the irregular part indicates where threat advance is slowed.
• Block: shows where the obstacle ties into severely restricted terrain
• The geospatial team can depict cross-country mobility based on obstacles and vehicle.
• Capabilities and movement formations identify size/echelon supporting movements
• Social economic areas
• Religious/cultural sites

Mobility Obstacle Variation

• Mounted involves lakes and swaps dense urban areas
• Dismounted use minefields steep slops and barb wire.

Obstacles to Air Mobility

• They affect aircraft service ceilings, nap-of-the-earth flight, lift capabilities, and flight profiles.
• (Examples: tall buildings and cellular towers.)
• Obstacles may decrease info-related capability effectiveness to influence operations and activities.
• Terrain effects can require the use of alternate message delivering platforms

Cover and Concealment

• Cover is protection bullets flames nuclear chemical biological agents
• Cover and concealment can be ditches caves buildings
• Concealment is hiding force
• Observation field fire cover loss
• Terrain provide both the threat and friendly force will take them in account for fire power and directions.

Operations Evaluation Process

• The staff determines terrain effects on friendly and threat operations.
• MCOO and terrain effects matrix are the primary analysis tools.

Modified Combined Obstacle

• Integration of all impediments to mobility.
• Integrates builds up areas
• Overlay visualize
• Joint Intelligence product portray significant aspects mission tailored entire staff .

Restrictions MCOO

• It is for AAs terrain for M/V slopes large dense little bypasses
• Hinder effort main preferred speed format
• Slower by zigzag irregular the MCOO.

Weather Analysis

• Collection and interpretation effects ops and decision making aspects starts local refine current

Visibility Definition

• Greatest distance identifying factor
• Amount light weather conditions

Light Factors

• Begin More lighting operations
• Time Sunrise
• Sunset evening light ops
• Moonset the lighting phases

Weather can Affect

• Temperature thermal sights
• Covers illuminations varying efforts vision operation recognition operations.

Wind Effects

• Combating from direction blowing equipment stability reduces communications
• Support elevated and variable

Precipitation Effects

• Falls form cloud snow affect traffic operations collection
• Heavy communication personnel civilian

Extreme temperatures effects

• Equipment affecting operations troops terrain elevations lifted medium
• Can't carry full capacity can increase fuel consumption can't operate
• Overheating and affecting

Thermal Effect

• Usually twice daily between two infrared vehicles temperature is equal and unable to process image

Pressure Humidity

• Humans to cool less relative humidity moisture visibility operation
• Aviation pressure wing aircraft's