Fire and Maneuver

Practice the Simple Things HARD, and the hard things become simple.  I can't remember which of my buddies has that as part of his signature line, but it is largely true.  SF, Rangers, SEALs don't really train on anything different than a regular Soldier or Marine, they just train on the basics until they never get it wrong.

I don't know if Squids or Zoomies get a block of "Buddy SET!" and "Buddy MOVING!" buddy team exercises during their version of basic training but I know that even paper pushers in the Army get some live fire training on covering their battle buddy during a buddy team exercise.  This isn't saying that the Army/USMC is better than the Air Force or Navy, just that every Soldier and Marine should be familiar with the concepts of fire and maneuver.  The "Buddy Team" is the basis for all maneuver.  But this isn't rocket surgery, it's a simple concept that is scalable from a two man team all the way up to Echelons Above Reality.

Corporals and Sergeants are expected to be able to control a FIRE TEAM (4 men in two buddy teams) to set one buddy team to cover the other while they move.
Squad Leaders, (E-6's) are expected to control a SQUAD by maneuvering FIRE TEAMS.
Platoon Leaders are expected to be able to control a PLATOON by maneuvering SQUADS.
Company Commanders are expected to control a Company by maneuvering PLATOONS.  Three platoons, one fire, one maneuver, one reserve.

Battalion commanders are expected to control a Battalion by maneuvering COMPANIES.  Three companies (not including any specialty companies), one fire, one maneuveuver, one reserve.
This goes all the way up the food chain to Corps and Army level commanders that move Divisions and Brigades around the battlefield.  But the only real difference between a Buck Sergeant Fire Team Leader and a 3 Star General is one of scale and experience. 

I'm not saying that an E-5 is every bit as capable a commander as an O-5, it just isn't so, but that the basics of fire and manuever are the same.  Things just get a little more complicated as you go up the food chain and get different enablers to work with.  You don't start getting dedicated Machine Gun support until the Platoon Leader level (Squad in the USMC) and mortars to provide indirect fire until you get to the Company levle (Platoon in the USMC).  Having gone through the process of planning a Mech Infantry Battalion defense I can assure you that the level of planning is also much more in depth the higher you get (which is why BN Commanders have a dedicated Staff to help them analyze and plan missions).

So what does this have to do with "A Nation of Riflemen?"  Well first is that a nation of Riflemen is NOT a National Army.  The vaunted "Hunters of Wisconsin" being the whatever largest Army in the world is pure horse crap.  Yes they can shoot, and yes there is potential there, but it takes more than a rifle and the ability to shoot it to make an Army.  It is easier to teach a Soldier to shoot than it is to teach a shooter to soldier.  I'm not going to say that shooters don't have the skills to provide a credible threat against a modern miltary force, just that if you can't transition your INDIVIDUAL skills into a TEAM EFFORT then you are likely to get destroyed by those who can.  As a historical note, the Boers were excellent at combining their individual skills into a group effort.

As a recent historical example the Taliban has been fighting US Forces for over a decade now.  Individually they are fine warriors.  Collectively they fail to add up to a sum greater than its individual parts.  While the Taliban have the ability to mass forces, they aren't good at fire and maneuver.  Their cell structure doesn't give much scalability and their commanders keep getting killed off.  But to become more effect than a few disjointed teams here and there they need to be able to move teams the way a buddy team moves individuals.

So what do you need to know about Fire and Maneuver at the ground level?  First off the basics all apply, Shoot, Move, Communicate.  You shoot so your buddy can move, he moves, then he gets set and communicates to you that he is shooting so you can move.  It really is that simple, but when other guys are shooting back at you things get complicated in a hurry.

The basics:
Know where you are, know where your buddy is, and know where the bad guys are.  Don't run in front of your buddy who is trying to give you cover.  Friendly fire is even more accurate than enemy fire.
Maintain Situational Awareness, don't "tunnel in" on your objective.  The "lone sniper" you see is really the point man for an Infantry Platoon. 

When things go to hell, a "Break Contact Drill" is just fire and maneuver AWAY from the enemy.  Using disciplined fire to suppress or kill the enemy while you gain space in as orderly a manner as you can manage.

When you are the "Fire" element you need to be smart with your bullets.  Belt Fed Machineguns can provide suppressive fire to make them keep their heads down.  You can't carry enough ammo or reload fast enough to do the same with an M4gery (and if you can then you can't do it accurately).  If every time the bad guy sticks his head up you put a ding in his helmet that is every bit as effective "suppression" as you can achieve.  Don't waste bullets, but use them to achieve the effect you desire, which is keeping the bad guy pinned down until your buddy can move to a position to decisively end the fight.