Everyone has heard or mentioned the term "ambush" in conversation. This word has several meanings. It is used both literally and figuratively. The term "ambush", its meaning, the composition of the word, as well as its synonyms will be discussed in this article.
Meaning, composition, synonyms
The basic meaning of the term "ambush" is the location of a warrior, hidden from the enemy. Example in a sentence:
- Walking through the thicket, we ran into an enemy ambush.
- Being in ambush, we waited for the enemy, when he approached, we went on the attack.
- The detachment that went to the aid of the first company was ambushed and almost destroyed.
Here is another example of the use of the studied word:
"Here's an ambush," Ivan exclaimed when he discovered the phone was missing
From the above examples, you can see that the concept of "ambush" is used both literally and figuratively. That is, it can be both a place prepared for an attack and a sudden problem. In this case, the second option is colloquial.
The composition of the word "ambush" is as followsway. It has the prefix "for", the root "garden" and the ending "a".
Synonyms for the word "ambush" include:
- trap;
- difficulty;
- trap;
- trap;
- problem;
- complication.
Next, the concept and types of ambush regarding the interpretation of the word in the literal sense will be considered in detail.
General information
Ambush is a concept that is a place prepared in advance, which is located where the enemy is supposed to appear so that you can suddenly attack him. The ambush is used in any type of combat operations and on any terrain - on land, in water, and also in the air.
Ambush is organized both at night and in the daytime. They are arranged in front of the front, behind enemy lines and along the flanks. Ambushes are also arranged along the path of movement of enemy troops. In this case, the enemy, moving in full combat gear, with support vehicles, is not in full combat readiness and does not expect an attack at all.
Ambush targets
The main purpose of an ambush is to take the enemy by surprise and attack him. In this case, surprise is a significant advantage, which increases the chances of winning the battle. When creating an ambush and further attack from it, it is assumed either the complete destruction of the enemy, or the infliction of serious damage to him in manpower, equipment, if any.
Also, the goals of creating an ambush include partialdestruction of the enemy and the capture of his remaining forces to obtain important military data. In principle, in one and the other option, in case of victory over enemy forces, the result will be successful.
Ambush success
To achieve success it is necessary that the fighters in the ambush have a significant advantage over their enemies (the object of the ambush). It can be obtained by meeting a few prerequisites.
First of all, you need a positional advantage. In other words, the chosen position should put the enemy forces in a deliberately lose-lose circumstance that will be beneficial to those who set up the ambush. In fact, the use of an advantageous position and the surprise of an attack is the meaning of the described event.
Benefits
The advantage of an ambush group may lie in the weapon used, that is, its characteristics and efficiency of use. There may also be a quantitative advantage. However, if the number of attackers exceeds the number of defenders, this is not always the decisive factor.
The main thing is the tactically correct choice of position. So, for example, an ambush group, which has a smaller number of soldiers than a defending group, can gain quantitative superiority already in the first minutes of the battle. This can be achieved through massive fire from various types of weapons from a good, pre-arranged position.
In addition to the fire strike on enemy forces, the ambush group has the ability to mine the approaches to the ambush, as well as the path of possibleretreat of the enemy. This will increase his losses and give even more advantage to those who are ambushing.
Ambush by Senior Lieutenant Kolobanov
During the Great Patriotic War in August 1941, a unique tank ambush was set up on the outskirts of Leningrad. Senior Lieutenant Kolobanov received an order from the division commander to block three roads leading to the city at once.
A company of five tanks under the command of Kolobanov took an advantageous position at a height from which the crossroads of all roads were clearly visible. Having previously disguised all combat vehicles, namely KV-1 tanks, the company froze in anticipation of a fascist transport column.
After the air reconnaissance carried out by the Nazis, some time later, a reconnaissance group of motorcyclists appeared on the road, which was missed by the ambush group of Kolobanov. After the column of German tanks approached the distance of a successful shot, a company of Soviet tanks opened fire.
Operation results
First of all, the first, last, and tank, following in the middle of the fascist transport column, were hit. The Germans did not expect the attack and were in a state of panic. Soviet tanks, competently inflicting the first blow, deprived the Nazis of the possibility of both further advancement and retreat. The very same terrain did not allow the Germans to simply move off the road.
Taking advantage of the confusion in the ranks of the enemy, Kolobanov's company continued to conduct aimed fire. A well-created ambush made it possible to destroy as many as 42 fascist tanks, as well as an artillery battery, two companies of Nazi infantry and one car in just half an hour.
Thus, having a company of only five tanks, the Soviet troops managed to destroy the enemy forces, several times their number.
Ambush features
As the example above suggests, ambush is often a key factor in combat. Its main feature is surprise. Such a sudden attack simply does not allow you to correctly orient yourself and make a number of right decisions. The panic and erroneous actions of those who fell into the ambush give even more advantages to its organizers.
Night ambush can also be attributed to the features. This is another factor that gives an advantage to the ambush group. In addition to the fact that the enemy does not expect an attack and the correct position is tactically chosen, the night time of the day further increases the possibility of victory in the upcoming battle.
This is due to the fact that those who set up an ambush have time to study the area, get used to the darkness, and also know the exact place where the enemy forces will appear. It is also possible to use night vision devices, which become another advantage. The enemy, moving, each time finds himself in a new and unfamiliar area. Plus, visibility limited by darkness.
With such factors, the ambush group has almost ideal conditions for an attack. Moreover, success in this case is almostguaranteed.
An example of surprise and a quantitative factor
One example can be given that shows how important the effect of surprise is, and indicates the insignificance of quantitative superiority. The military documentary literature on sniper business describes such a case.
During the US invasion of North Vietnam in 1967, occupying US Marines staged a sniper ambush. Two American snipers, while in the Vietnamese rainforest, destroyed a Vietnamese soldier near a company. This was made possible by the following factors:
- First of all, the position. While in the forest, the US Marines, after several shots fired at the Vietnamese soldiers, began to move. Overcoming distances of up to several hundred meters, they did not stop monitoring the Vietnamese, who were in the open.
- American soldiers took advantage of the fact that the Vietnamese were in direct sunlight, which did not have the best effect on their well-being (overheating, risk of sunstroke).
- Also, the soldiers of North Vietnam were deprived of the possibility of redeployment due to the threat of new shots from the enemy. They had to lie on the ground without looking up, with no possibility of a counterattack, as the location of the American soldiers was unknown.
- The high efficiency of the attackers' weapons, which made it possible to conduct aimed fire from a distance of about 800 meters. The characteristics of the weapon, which made it possible to fire from such a distance, in fact, made the US Marines invulnerable to the Vietnamese.
- Various level of training. It should be noted that the US Marines were quite well trained and the Vietnamese military were new recruits.
- The right choice of goals. First of all, American snipers killed Vietnamese officers, thereby depriving the rank and file of command. The recruits in the current situation could not act correctly, moreover, they did not know what to do at all. As a result, fatal mistakes began to be made. Some of them, succumbing to panic, tried to escape, but were immediately killed. As a result of this ambush, almost the entire company of the Vietnamese military was destroyed.
It can be noted that all of the above factors allowed American snipers to fire almost like in a shooting range. Without risking their lives, they managed to destroy the enemy in a fairly short period of time.
Preparing an ambush
Photos, maps and visual study of the area are essential for the preparation of this event. A large number of factors should be taken into account: weather conditions, time of day, terrain and road surface, the number of enemy forces, their weapons and the level of military training. One of the most important roles is played by a place for an ambush group, as well as its disguise.
All this will be the decisive factor during the clash. This will not only determine the outcome of the battle, but also directlywill affect the number of combat losses. That is why, when setting up an ambush, the command approaches its correct organization with great care.
In conclusion, it should be noted that the value of the ambush is very important. It is undoubtedly one of the most important tactics that brings impressive results. The vivid examples described in the article speak eloquently about the reliability of this conclusion.
