Source: Forces News
The role of special observer is unique. Their job is to march up to 100km ahead of the frontline - deep into enemy territory and in the dead of night construct observation posts in buildings, bushes or underground. Then they must watch and wait, silently logging the enemy’s every move and feeding it back to command. The information they send will be crucial.
4/73 (Sphinx) Special Observation Post Battery RA
4/73 Battery comprises a Battery Headquarters and four Patrols Troops. It has a strength of six officers and 58 other ranks. Three troops, each of a 3-man Headquarters and two 6-man Patrols provide support to the brigades of 3rd Mechanised Division and others. One troop of a 3-man Headquarters and one 6-man Patrol at high readiness to support 16 Air Assault Brigade.
Special Observers give commanders the ability to deploy a specialist force element at range, in proximity to the enemy and in all weathers, to locate and prosecute targets as required. Working as the ISTAR (Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance) group in each of the brigades, the STA Patrols Troop are subject matter experts on Static Covert Surveillance (SCS) and complement the reconnaissance activity conducted by other Ground Manned Reconnaissance (GMR) forces in the Brigade.
The skill set includes:
- manned observation post (OPs)
- real time transmission of information
- comprehensive technical surveillance, through use of: long lens optics, cameras and data transfer systems, to provide imagery of evidential quality
- deployment of Long Range Electro Optical (LREO) systems: covert remote cameras and sensors
- initiation of the full spectrum of joint fires
- conduct of battle damage assessment (BDA)
- trained in Survive, Evade, Resist, Extract (SERE)
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