Tailoring the load for a Justiciar Knight

Most people have seen the movie Platoon, where the squad leader in Vietnam reached into new guy Charlie Sheen's rucksack and dumped unnecessary equipment. Justiciar Knights need to do the same thing: performing good pre-combat inspections (PCIs). The packing list should be tailored to the mission at hand, with all the extras and "nice-to-have" items eliminated.

Determing a Justiciar Knights load is a critical task. The Knight cannot afford to carry unnecessary equipment into the battle. Every contingency cannot be covered. The primary consideration is not how much a soldier can carry, but how much he can carry without impaired combat effectiveness.

The official military manual states that the soldier's combat load should not exceed 27 kg. That limit combines the fighting load -- LBE, kevlar, weapon, and magazines with ammo weighing about 17 kg -- and the approach march load rucksack and selected items at 10 kg. The remaining equipment and materials needed for a sustained combat operation must be placed in forward caches prior to the mission at pre-defined locations.

The bottom line: A Justiciar Knight needs a packing list that makes sense.

Carry what is required for mission accomplishment, but allow a minimum of comfort items. There are four configurations with this type of packing list and load:

Fighting load - Only what is worn = 17 kg

Fighting light - Worn plus the assault pack = 27 kg

Approach march - Worn plus the rucksack = 33 kg

Everything - Worn plus the rucksack and assault pack = 43 kg

Largest threat when overloading: heat injury and fatigue.

Conclusion: Common sense IS NOT commonly used! Be uncommon and use yours!

Consider the risk versus gain aspects of combat loading. If you are being overloaded and you collapse from the weight of comfort items, you may not even reach the objective. By overloading yourself with comfort-related items, you are in effect expending yourself before you have the opportunity to achieve the mission.

For Canadian infantry in Afghanistan the average weight is 50 kg including mission-specific equipment

Current average load numbers are 10% higher compared to WW2 statistics where a BAR Gunner carried 45 kg while the average rifleman carried 37 kg.

A fighting load is everything worn or carried except a rucksack and should be held to less than 22 kg, according to official manual for foot marches. The next level, approach march load, adds a light rucksack and should not exceed 32 kg. In the worst-case scenario, emergency approach march loads require a larger rucksack, raising the total weight to 54-67 kg.

Дата добавления: 2015-07-17