Weapons fire that degrades the performance of an enemy force
A U.S. Navy Special Warfare Combat Crewman uses a minigun on a riverine vessel to lay suppressive fire during a "hot extraction" training exercise
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In military science, suppressive fire is "fire that degrades the performance of an enemy force below the level needed to fulfill its mission". When used to protect exposed friendly troops advancing on the battlefield, it is commonly called covering fire. Suppression is usually only effective for the duration of the fire.[1] It is one of three types of fire support, which is defined by NATO as "the application of fire, coordinated with the maneuver of forces, to destroy, neutralise or suppress the enemy".
Before NATO defined the term, the British and Commonwealth armies generally used "neutralisation" with the same definition as suppression. NATO now defines neutralisation as "fire delivered to render a target temporarily ineffective or unusable".[2]
^"AAP-6 NATO Glossary of Terms and Definitions, Edition 2014" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-05-01. Retrieved 2015-11-14.
^Müller, Lars (December 2015). "The Force Intervention Brigade—United Nations Forces beyond the Fine Line Between Peacekeeping and Peace Enforcement". Journal of Conflict and Security Law. 20 (3): 368. doi:10.1093/jcsl/krv005.
In military science, suppressivefire is "fire that degrades the performance of an enemy force below the level needed to fulfill its mission". When used...
aware that switching from the belt-fed M249 would result in a loss of suppressivefire capability, Charles Clark III, of the Marine Corps' Combat Development...
directed, while the B team provided suppressivefire. Suppressivefire from the BAR would be supplemented by fire from the rifles of his team as he reloaded...
also designed to be fired from the hip or on the move as a form of suppressivefire intended to pin down the enemy. Marching fire is a specific tactic...
Marching fire, also known as walking fire, is a military tactic—a form of suppressivefire used during an infantry assault or combined arms assault. Advancing...
They generally have a high rate of fire and a large ammunition capacity, and are often used for suppressivefire to support infantry advances or defend...
capable of firing shotgun shells automatically, usually also semi-automatically. Machine gun A large group of heavier firearms used for suppressive automatic...
are two options for firing against infantry; Suppressivefire and Normal fire. Vehicles are not normally affected by suppressivefire so it's generally...
or Bren gun. This ability made it extremely effective in providing suppressivefire, and its unique sound led to it being nicknamed "Hitler's buzzsaw"...
leading the counterattack, directing close air support and providing suppressivefire to help the wounded to an aid station. Despite being wounded, Romesha...
take cover until the flanking unit engages them. Heavy and continuous suppressivefire keeps an opponent in a defensive posture (hunkered in their foxholes...
protective fireSuppressivefire Time on target John Pike. "FM 6-30 Chapter 7 Special Observer Missions". globalsecurity.org. Fire coordination area Fire capabilities...
gun. British troops were issued with FN Minimi machine guns to add suppressivefire out to 300 metres. The weapon drills were changed with the upgrade...
troops and auxiliaries whose doctrines emphasized on close-quarter suppressivefire. New submachine gun designs appeared frequently during the Cold War...
movement of coordinated units to allow, if necessary, suppressivefire in support of offensive forward "fire and movement" or defensive "center peel" disengagement...
wounded by hostile automatic weapons fire. Sergeant Walkabout quickly rose to his feet and delivered steady suppressivefire on the attackers while other team...
exception of the barrel length, and can be used either as suppressivefire or direct fire weapons. The Mk 43 Mod 1 adds significantly more rail attachment...
battles throughout history, such as the Battle of Waterloo. Fire attacks – reconnaissance by fire is used by apprehensive soldiers when they suspect the enemy...
volume of fire in relatively close quarters situations (within 100-300 yds). The idea is that a large volume of accurate suppressivefire will immobilize...
muzzle stabilizer. Despite these modifications, it remained a poor suppressivefire weapon owing to its 20-round magazines and a tendency to rapidly overheat...
Abrams tanks engaged enemy positions with suppressivefire. During the assault, his team came under heavy enemy fire from an adjacent building to the north...
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