TAB D (SMOKE OPS) to APPENDIX 4 (CBRNE OPERATIONS) to ANNEX J (CBRNE) to 130th MEB (TACSOP)
SMOKE OPERATIONS CHECKLIST
1. Purpose. This card establishes standards and responsibilities for the conduct of smoke operations in the MEB AOR.
2. Smoke employment is a significant combat multiplier when coordinated with a maneuver operation. Commanders should consider smoke employment during offensive, defensive, and deception operations. MEB units must be prepared to rapidly integrate, employ, and exploit the capabilities provided by a chemical smoke unit.
3. Planning Factors.
a. Chemical Smoke Platoon Capabilities. Chemical smoke platoons are organized with six (6) to seven (7) wheeled (M56 Coyote) or tracked (M58 Wolf) smoke generators. A smoke platoon can provide 90 minutes of visual/near infrared obscurant and 30 minutes of infrared obscurant without resupply. To sustain obscurant operations:
(1) Fog oil. Fog oil is a visual obscurant, which defeats enemy use of binoculars, weapon sights, night observation sights, and laser range finders. Each vehicle has a 120-gallon fog oil tank, sufficient for 2 hours of smoke. The platoon has one TPU carrying 1,200-gallons of fog oil and can produce 4 hours of smoke with organic fog oil before resupply is required.
(2) Graphite. Graphite is an infrared (IR) obscurant, which degrades the enemy’s ability to identify heat signatures for weapons systems and vehicles. Each vehicle carries 300 pounds of pelletized graphite, sufficient for 30 minutes of IR obscuration. The platoon LMTV can carry 5,000 pounds of pelletized graphite. The platoon can produce 2 hours of IR obscuration with organic supplies.
b. Smoke Pot Employment and Consumption
(1) Table 1 is the spacing guide for smoke pots. Determine the weather, terrain type, distance to the target, and the desired smoke effect. When using the table to determine actual spacing, round up to the next whole number:
Table 1. Smoke pot spacing guide
SMOKE POT SPACING GUIDEWIND SPEED / TEMPERATURE GRADIENT / TERRAIN / SPACING (meters) / METERS to TARGET
KMPH / KNOTS / HAZE / BLANKET
1 - 14 / 1 – 7 / All / Open or Water / 50 / 25 / 250
Stable / Wooded / 60 / 30 / 300
Unstable or Neutral / 70 / 35 / 350
15 - 25 / 8 – 13 / All / Open or Water / 40 / 20 / 200
Wooded / 50 / 25 / 250
26 - 32 / 14 - 17 / All / Open or Water / 30 / 15 / 150
Wooded / 40 / 20 / 200
(2) Table 2 is the smoke pot consumption guide. To use the table, the length of the target, spacing between pots in meters (from the chart above), and desired length of time that the target effects are to be sustained must have been determined. Begin with the time the target is to be smoked, then locate the spacing between pots determined in the table above. Under the pot spacing, find the target length. The intersection of the target length and the desired smoke time provides the number of smoke pots required.
Table 2. Smoke pot consumption and planning guide
SMOKE POTS CONSUMPTION AND PLANNING GUIDEPot Spacing / 20m / 30m / 40m / 50m
Target Length
/ 100m / 500m / 1000m / 100m / 500m / 1000m / 100m / 500m / 1000m / 100m / 500m / 1000m
Smoke Time
15 min / 9 / 13 / 77 / 6 / 27 / 51 / 6 / 21 / 39 / 5 / 17 / 32
30 min / 18 / 78 / 153 / 12 / 48 / 102 / 12 / 42 / 78 / 9 / 33 / 63
1 hour / 36 / 156 / 306 / 24 / 108 / 204 / 24 / 84 / 156 / 18 / 66 / 126
Smoke Pots Required
c. Artillery and Mortar Quick Smoke. While fire support units have the ability to deliver smoke, sustained smoke operations make firing units vulnerable to detection and enemy counterstrike or attack. The flexibility of fire support units, however, makes them ideal for quick smoke, suppression, and/ or employment in conjunction with smoke pots or chemical smoke and limits their vulnerability. For employment planning, the basic characteristics of artillery and mortar smoke are outlined below:
Table 3. Planning considerations of artillery and mortar smoke
PLANNING CHARACTERISTICS OF ARTILLERY AND MORTAR SMOKEDelivery System / Type Round / Time to Build Effective Smoke / Average Burning Time / Average Obscuration Length (meters) per Round Based on Wind Direction *
Cross / Quartering / Head/ Tail
155 mm FA / WP / ½ min / 1 – 1½ min / 150 / 75 / 50
HC / 1 – 1½ min / 4 min / 350 / 250 / 75
120mm Mortar / WP / ½ min / 1 min / 200 / 80 / 40
81mm Mortar / WP / ½ min / 1 min / 100 / 60 / 40
60mm Mortar / WP / ½ min / 1 min / 75 / 50 / 40
* NOTE: Wind and weather conditions assumed are 9kt winds, low humidity, and lapse or neutral temperature gradient.
d. Uses of Smoke: Smoke is used on the battlefield to support combat operations by obscuring, screening, protecting, and marking.
(1) Obscuring smoke is smoke delivered directly on or immediately in front of enemy forces to blind or degrade their vision within and beyond their location.
(2) Screening smoke is smoke delivered in areas between friendly and enemy forces or in friendly operational areas to degrade enemy ground or aerial observation.
(3) Protective smoke is used to defeat enemy guidance systems or to attenuate energy weapons on the battlefield.
(4) Marking smoke includes smoke used to mark targets, identify friendly positions, and indicate a planned, pre-arranged message.
NOTE: Friendly units will mask when in the smoke screen.
e. Priority. The MEB’s standard priority for defensive use of smoke assets is as follows:
(1) Bridges
(2) Q37 and Q36 Radars.
(3) Aviation Assets.
(4) Engineer Assets/Point of Penetration
WARNING NOTE: Timing, local weather conditions, and effects must be carefully considered, and employment locations selected to prevent smoke from having an adverse impact on friendly operations.
4. Smoke Employment Checklist. Leaders will use the following checklist to prepare for smoke operations:
a. Define the smoke objective(s) for the operation
(1) Determine the employment location
(2) Dimensions of the area where the effect of smoke is/will be desired (target)
(3) Desired effect
(4) Duration of the smoke.
b. Are desired smoke objectives prioritized?
c. Does the weather forecasted and local conditions for the desired period support the use/employment of smoke?
(1) Wind direction
(2) Wind speed
(3) Humidity
(4) Precipitation
(5) Cloud cover
(6) Temperature gradient (time of day)
d. Do the terrain effects in the area impact on the use of smoke?
(1) Large hill masses
(2) Slopes and/or valleys
(3) Flat, unbroken, over water
(4) Ground cover, vegetation, obstructions
e. Has reconnaissance confirmed the impact of localized conditions on smoke operations?
f. If vehicle generators or hand-emplaced pyrotechnics are to be employed, are routes and employment locations covered and concealed from enemy observation and fires? Can threatening enemy positions be suppressed/ neutralized?
g. Does available smoke generation and sustainment capability (systems/gallons/rounds/devices) available equal time required to execute the required combat task/ mission? NOTE: (+) multiple sources of smoke may be employed; (-) smoke effects must build and be sustained.
h. Who and from what location will make the GO/ NO GO or smoke/ no smoke decision?
i. Are signals and communications coordinated?
j. What is the estimated “build time” for the desired smoke effect?
k. Has coordination been made with adjacent/supporting units for cross boundary smoke effects?