A Series of Observations on Units Using High-Temperature Weather to Enhance Combat Effectiveness
Dog Days Surge with Heat Waves, Battlefields Rise with Gunsmoke — A Series of Observations on Units Using High-Temperature Weather to Enhance Combat Effectiveness
**Battle Cannons Roar, Forging an Iron Fist**
■ Xiao Zhiyong, Hu Yuhang
In the dog days of summer, heat steams and surges. An Army brigade launched a full-element, multi-subject, multi-munition live-fire shooting exercise, raising the curtain of battle amid rolling waves of heat.
"Calculate target coordinates and prepare for fire." Upon arriving in the mission area, the survey section received the order and immediately set up an observation position to conduct three-dimensional reconnaissance. However, under the high-temperature weather, sunlight was blinding, and ground heat shimmer distorted target outlines, causing range-measurement values to become highly unstable.
Seeing this, Platoon Leader Zhang Pengliang issued an order: "Shift observation position; reactivate the alternate observation point and recalculate." Officers and soldiers moved on command, quickly mounted vehicles, and maneuvered to the alternate observation point; they fine-tuned the elevation angle of the observation bracket, added light-filtering lenses to reduce strong-light interference, and continuously collected cyclic data on air temperature, wind speed, and humidity, using cross-comparison to reduce deviations caused by the natural environment.
Before long, officers and soldiers calculated reliable target coordinate data and transmitted it back at the first opportunity. Inside the command post, multiple stations immediately used the returned information to compute firing data (射击诸元).
"Full company volley — ready — fire!" At the commander's order, shells screamed through the air and drove straight into the target area.
"The terrain in the mission area is complex, cut through with gullies; summer brings high temperature and humidity and shifting winds. How to deliver precise fire strikes under complex environmental and weather conditions has always been a key and difficult subject in artillery training," explained Section Chief Yang of the brigade's fire support section. They treat high-temperature weather as a natural "whetstone," comprehensively employing multiple types of ammunition, never pre-setting targets or simplifying procedures throughout, and continuously organizing training in subjects including intelligence reconnaissance, firing-data computation, surprise fire, and fire assessment, comprehensively testing and enhancing the unit's integrated combat capability in complex field environments.
Prolonged exposure to high-temperature environments causes propellant charges to heat up easily, accelerating ammunition burn rate and increasing chamber pressure, which affects firing accuracy. This reporter observed at the training site that ammunition support personnel monitored propellant temperature in real time and used camouflage netting beside the guns to construct ammunition storage points, creating as cool an environment as possible.
Under the relentless scorching sun, artillery pieces were burning hot after firing, and the fully equipped gun crews felt as though they were inside a furnace — their combat uniforms soaked through with sweat again and again, then baked dry by the blazing sun again and again. The brigade's leadership explained that before training commenced, they used field ambulances to set up a temporary aid station equipped with a simple cooling pool, while also providing each officer and soldier with a heatstroke-prevention kit and organizing multiple heat-stroke emergency response drills, effectively guarding against the safety hazards posed by high temperatures.
At the training site, before the gunsmoke had cleared, the exercise control group issued another batch of target information. The multiple rocket launcher (火箭炮) subunit pressed on without pause, firing dozens of rockets. After several rounds of fire, the commander used drone-relayed imagery to assess "enemy" target damage in real time; each gun crew used the fire control system to rapidly update firing data and deliver concentrated fire coverage against targets, successfully destroying targets that had "slipped through the net."
When training ended, an on-the-spot after-action review was immediately convened. Participating officers and soldiers thoroughly examined shortcomings and weaknesses in areas including fire response speed, firing-data correction accuracy, and position maneuver coordination; they studied improvement measures on the spot, summarized the characteristics of fire strikes in high-temperature weather, and identified the direction for improving training in the next phase.
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**War Eagles Temper Their Wings in Fire**
■ Zhang Yue, PLA Daily Reporter Wang Yue
On a summer morning, an airfield of an air force unit under the Western Theater Command was a scene of busy activity, with maintenance officers and soldiers carefully inspecting and servicing aircraft in preparation for flight training.
Opening the hangar doors, a wave of heat rushed out. Electronics technician Niu Shaoxiong of the maintenance squadron operated the ventilation equipment while explaining to this reporter: "Every summer, high temperatures easily 'trap' moisture inside the hangar. If ventilation and dehumidification are not carried out promptly, it can affect the aircraft's electronic equipment."
Shortly after, the roar of aircraft engines started up, and scorching blasts of air poured from the exhaust nozzles. Maintenance personnel worked in close coordination, racing against time to complete power-on checks. Mechanic Di Ze's sweat ran down his temples, quickly soaking his maintenance uniform. Outside the cockpit, Niu Shaoxiong and his comrades connected air-conditioning vehicles to continuously cool the aircraft, ensuring normal operation of the avionics systems.
"High-temperature weather has a certain effect on equipment performance and tactical employment, and it is also no small challenge for personnel," the unit's leadership explained. Targeting the changes in personnel, equipment, and environment that high temperatures tend to induce, they sorted through common special situations (特情), anticipated extreme scenarios, explored equipment support measures for high-temperature environments, and had pilots set key reminder words in advance to alert one another. For this flight training, they organized instruction against a real-combat standard, from the most difficult and strictest angle, conducting intensive and refined training in subjects including valley flight and ground attack, forging and enhancing the unit's ground-strike capability.
As noon approached, this reporter observed on a thermometer that the ground surface temperature was approaching 50°C.
"Take off!" At the commander's order, multiple aircraft successively engaged afterburners and climbed into the sky, slicing through the scorching air and heading for the target airspace. The formation coordinated closely, threading through mountain valley corridors to deliver precision strikes against designated targets.
Under the blazing sun, pilot Chen Qiushi and his crewmates overcame the adverse effects of high-temperature weather; front and rear cockpits coordinated closely to precisely lock onto the target. As several missiles screamed away, the "enemy" radar position was successfully destroyed.
As the aircraft returned, maintenance personnel immediately sprang into action. Mechanic Wen Chong used temperature-measuring equipment to check aircraft tire temperatures, then crawled into the scorching air intake to inspect engine condition; other personnel conducted detailed checks for common problems and frequently occurring faults in high-temperature environments, with focused monitoring of component temperature changes after prolonged equipment operation.
The unit's leadership explained that they dynamically adjusted training plans in accordance with high-temperature weather characteristics, implemented modular support with rapid supply and rapid servicing, rationally arranged crew rotation training to reduce prolonged operations, formulated high-temperature support contingency plans, kept close watch on equipment prone to faults, anticipated common special situations during taxiing, takeoff, and landing phases, and rigorously organized emergency drills.
"Change takeoff direction!" As night fell and the heat had yet to dissipate, another batch of aircraft screamed into the sky, launching new adversarial exercises above the clouds. Inside the control tower, the meteorological duty officer kept close watch on changes in all monitoring data and, in response to the reality that large diurnal temperature swings in recent days had been causing wind direction changes, promptly offered recommendations to the commander.
The unit's leadership explained that during this period, they summarized and formulated 3 categories of more than 10 countermeasures in response to the characteristics of organizing and conducting training in high-temperature weather, validated multiple new tactical method (新战法) results, and further improved training quality and effectiveness.
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**Tempering the Long Sword Deep in Dense Forest**
■ Li Wanqiang, Wang Guoqiang, PLA Daily Special Correspondent Zhang Xinkai
In midsummer, the ground surface temperature at a certain field training site soared to 50°C. As an urgent whistle blast sounded, a full-system, full-element, full-process (全体系、全要素、全流程) live-force adversarial exercise by a Rocket Force unit got underway in fierce earnest.
"Unidentified smoke detected — don chemical protective equipment immediately!" At the commander's order, officers and soldiers of a certain launch element rapidly donned chemical protective equipment. Inside the sealed protective suits, the stifling heat was like a steamer. Launch operator Xiao Qi's face mask quickly fogged over with a layer of "water mist," blurring his vision. But drawing on his extensive operational experience, he rapidly completed the sequence of procedures including system power-on and equipment deployment.
At the training site, the security group exploited favorable terrain and employed concealment and deception (隐真示假) tactics, launching smoke screens on the main roads to confuse and deceive the "enemy"; the "three-defense" (三防) group drove reconnaissance and decontamination vehicles forward to conduct detection and reconnaissance, laid markers by agent type and contamination level, and commenced decontamination operations.
"The harsher the environment, the better it tests operators' true training level," the unit's leadership explained. Since the onset of the dog days, they have closely aligned with real-combat requirements to set up dangerous scenarios and study tactics, pushing personnel and equipment to their limits in extreme weather, and continuously consolidating the core combat capabilities of being ready to fight at any time, launching on schedule, and achieving effective destruction (随时能战、准时发射、有效毁伤). To enhance officers' and soldiers' heat tolerance, they also scientifically formulated a heat acclimatization (热习服) training plan, using a progressively increasing intensity approach to allow officers and soldiers to gradually adapt to high-temperature environments and temper their combat will.
"Under 'enemy' air attack — disperse and take cover." As a special situation arose suddenly, officers and soldiers moved like the wind, immediately dispersing and concealing themselves, with missile combat vehicles winding their way through mountain forest.
High temperatures test not only people but also equipment. At midday, after a certain launch element had completed a long-distance, high-speed maneuver, the vehicle engine's roar became abnormally muffled. Driver Tian Changhong immediately stopped the vehicle and crawled underneath to carry out repairs. The scorching metal components burned his skin painfully, but he paid no heed, rapidly conducting an inspection using his self-developed "four-step repair method" and successfully eliminating the fault hazard.
At the same time, several other launch elements deployed in the depths of the dense forest and organized combat launch training. Inside the missile launch vehicles, commanders kept close watch on the central control display screens, closely monitoring changes in all categories of data including instruments, equipment, and tire pressure. "Under high-temperature conditions, communications equipment is prone to anomalies," a communications operator told this reporter. Conducting training under high-temperature conditions requires close attention to equipment anomalies and constant readiness to switch to backup systems, ensuring communications equipment remains fully operational.
Subjected to "enemy" strong electromagnetic jamming, communications cut off… Faced with special situations arriving one after another, command-and-control operators responded swiftly, inspecting fiber-optic cables, testing channels, and switching frequencies to establish communications links for mission accomplishment.
This reporter observed at the training site that medical personnel carried medicine kits and provided support throughout; officers and soldiers could obtain heatstroke-prevention medicines such as Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui and Fengyoujing at any time. During training breaks, medical officers gave officers and soldiers on-site instruction in early recognition of heat stroke and emergency first-aid knowledge, demonstrating common treatment methods such as cold-water misting and ice-pack cooling, ensuring training proceeded safely and in an orderly manner.
After training concluded, maintenance subunit squad leader Cai Xingxing led technical backbone personnel in conducting a "physical examination" of each combat vehicle one by one. "High-temperature weather has a significant impact on equipment performance; we must inspect and maintain to an even higher standard, not overlooking a single detail," Cai Xingxing told this reporter.
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**Capture-and-Annihilation Combat Seizes the "Stubborn Enemy"**
■ Hu Xiao, Tong Shuai
In the Central Plains in August, the sun blazes overhead.
"Multiple 'violent terrorist elements' are holding 'hostages,' concealed in an abandoned building — your unit is ordered to immediately organize a capture-and-annihilation operation!" As an urgent whistle blast sounded, a realistic capture-and-annihilation training exercise under high-temperature conditions by a detachment of the People's Armed Police Henan General Corps got underway.
Participating officers and soldiers moved on command, donned equipment, drew weapons, and quickly mounted vehicles, driving straight for the target area.
"Armed assault — upon arrival in the target area, immediately conduct on-site reconnaissance!" When vehicles reached a point approximately 1.5 kilometers from where the "violent terrorist elements" were hiding, the commander ordered officers and soldiers to dismount and advance on foot.
Heat waves rolled, and the ground surface temperature had already exceeded 40°C. Officers and soldiers sprinted forward under the weight of their combat equipment. Before long, large beads of sweat slid down their sun-darkened faces, and dark sweat stains gradually spread across their camouflage uniforms.
Upon reaching the target area, officers and soldiers coordinated closely to scale the obstacle zone; the reconnaissance group rapidly operated drones to conduct forward reconnaissance; the sniper group nimbly climbed to the rooftop to seize the commanding high ground; the assault group and heavy fire group selected concealed positions and stood by to strike.
Section Chief Jiang of the detachment's operations and training section explained that high-temperature weather is a favorable condition for tempering officers' and soldiers' combat skills and forging their combat will. In this exercise, they set up subjects in continuous sequence — armed assault, close-in reconnaissance, key-point seizure and control, precision sniping, movement shooting, and breach-and-rescue — with the focus on testing the unit's integrated combat capability across reconnaissance, control, strike, rescue, and support (侦、控、打、救、保).
"The standalone building to the due north is the hiding point of the 'violent terrorist elements'; one 'violent terrorist element' has been spotted on the perimeter standing guard, with six more 'violent terrorist elements' inside the building." Through careful observation, the reconnaissance group rapidly reported the on-site situation to the commander.
"Sniper group covers the assault group's concealed approach — eliminate the perimeter sentry at the designated point. Heavy fire group strengthens the cordon — strictly prevent 'violent terrorist elements' from resisting or fleeing. Assault group rapidly occupies the attack launch position — prepare to rescue the 'hostages'!" After comprehensively assessing the information relayed back by each group, the commander rapidly issued orders.
Heat waves shimmered; the observer lay prone on the scorching rooftop, concentrating intently on calculating the relevant parameters. The blinding sunlight affected aiming, so the sniper immediately attached a sun shade to reduce glare interference.
At the command, the sniper gently squeezed the trigger, and the "violent terrorist element" standing perimeter guard fell instantly.
"Two 'violent terrorist elements' are fleeing — deal with them immediately." Faced with a special situation set up on the spot by the exercise control group, the heavy fire group rapidly determined the location of the "violent terrorist elements" and opened fire decisively.
At the same time, the assault group leader used hand signals to direct one team of members to breach the door and enter, while another team stood watch at the windows to prevent the "enemy" from fleeing. The two teams coordinated closely, subduing all the "violent terrorist elements" who were putting up a last-ditch resistance.
When the gunsmoke cleared, officers and soldiers were soaked through; support personnel brought mung bean soup to help everyone cool down. The detachment's leadership explained that in response to high-temperature weather, they scientifically organized heat acclimatization (热习服) training, configured medical forces to provide accompanying support throughout, replenished heatstroke-prevention medicines and cooling water bags, and ensured training safety.
Photos provided by: Cai Congrong, Wang Wei, Li Wanqiang, Guo Xing, Huang Qianbo, Sun Changyi
Layout design: Wang Jia