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Fieldcraft – Moving in the field
By M Crighton of 90 (Speke) Squadron
Camouflaging Techniques:
- Never use too many leaves, branches, grass etc, to camouflage yourself. If you have too little camouflage, you will be seen, in the same way if you have too much on. You need to get the right level of camouflage.
- Make sure nothing shines. NO metallic objects, such as knives and dog - tags, and remove any metal watches.
- Blend in with your surroundings. For example, don’t use DPM Woodland Camo, if you will be moving around buildings. Also, don’t use isolated cover. If there is a bush with an opening, hide in there to provide extra camouflage.
The 6 Camouflaging Elements:
Shape: Disguise your shape, including equipment and weapons.
Shadow: Keep in the shadows, and also be aware that your body casts a shadow in the sun.
Silhouette: Don’t skyline, when moving across open fields, stay as low as possible, for example.
Surface: Don’t differ from your surroundings; use the correct camouflage for the environment.
Spacing: Keep spread out, but make sure you are not equally spaced.
Movement: Move carefully; avoid twigs etc, no sudden movements. At night, you are louder.
The Different Field Movements:
The leopard crawl: Lying on the floor in the prone position, keeping head up looking in the direction moving. Using hands, elbows and knees to move, but staying flat on the ground. Move slowly.
The monkey run: Basically a crouching run. Keeping back bent, with head up, arms as low as they can get either side of legs. Hands should literally brush the grass. Controlled movement – not too loud.
The Ghost Walk: Walking very slowly, lifting legs high and picking a suitable “twigless” position to place your foot. Arms high to move branches if necessary.
The Cat Walk: Crawling on hands and knees. Keeping head up, search the ground for twigs, remove them from that area, and move to the position you just searched.
The Kitten Crawl: Once again, in the prone position, this time using our arms to move, Keeping elbows tucked in close to the side, lift the body and move forward, as slowly as possible. Keep head up.
Remember – at night you rely on your hearing more than your vision, so remember that you are louder. At night, it takes roughly 30 minutes for the eyes to adapt to the lower light levels.
Also, if you can see the enemy, in day or night, there is a good possibility that they can also see you.
