Comprehensively Strengthening Combat Training and War Preparedness | Field Garrison Training Across the Armed Forces Emphasizes Tempering Battlefield Survivability

PLA Daily report by correspondents Yan Shan and Chen Li: Early autumn, deep in a dense forest. A battalion of the Information Support Force had just finished establishing a position when it received an exercise-control directive: "Enemy satellite passing overhead; unmanned aerial vehicle approaching for reconnaissance." Officers and soldiers swiftly gathered their equipment, deployed camouflage, reduced heat signatures and eliminated traces, and quickly blended the position into the surrounding terrain.

"If you can't stay hidden, it means handing battlefield initiative to the enemy; only by surviving do you earn the right to decide when to fight, where to fight, and how to fight." A commander in the battalion said that in the past, training position selection often prioritized whether equipment could be conveniently deployed, but now whether the enemy can detect you has become an important benchmark, and battlefield camouflage and the handling of special situations (特情处置) are emphasized throughout all training.

These words reflect a transformation now taking place across field garrison training sites throughout the armed forces: as combat-realistic training (实战化训练) advances in depth, the tempering of battlefield survivability has become increasingly important. Battlefield camouflage, counter-satellite reconnaissance, counter-UAV reconnaissance, electromagnetic interference protection — one "survivability subject" after another is placed before participating officers and soldiers.

At an Army brigade's garrison training site, camouflage construction training is underway. Officers and soldiers have abandoned the old approach of "erecting shelters and draping nets," instead combining local vegetation and terrain to apply "tailored" camouflage to vehicles and equipment, striving to blend seamlessly with the surrounding environment. Camouflage extends to every detail: routes are planned before entering a position to avoid leaving telltale vehicle tracks; camouflage mats are laid at the entrance to the bivouac area to ensure not an inch of fresh earth is exposed.

Multiple reconnaissance elements of the 81st Group Army used the opportunity of field garrison training to conduct intensive, focused training on subjects including counter-UAV reconnaissance and defense against harassment attacks. Upon receiving a UAV harassment directive, a sniper team immediately concealed itself in the forest. Sniper and Senior Private Chen Wente unfolded a thermal blanket and wrapped it tightly around his entire body, then used locally sourced moist soil and fresh turf for camouflage. "In the past we only focused on visual concealment, but now, facing an adversary's thermal imaging reconnaissance, we must consider factors such as soil moisture and turf freshness — all of which can affect camouflage effectiveness," Chen Wente said.

Daytime camouflage is a contest of details; nighttime survival tests discipline. A brigade of the 71st Group Army has made nighttime light discipline and heat-source concealment mandatory courses in survivability training. The brigade organized a nighttime live-fire exercise with a new type of multiple rocket launcher, enforcing strict light discipline throughout: the vehicle convoy drove with lights off along concealed routes, all heat-emitting components were covered, and the position was completely silent and showed no visible flame before firing. "Light discipline is a basic skill for actual combat — control every inch of light, and you gain one more measure of advantage on the battlefield," said Battalion Commander Yang of the brigade.

At the front lines of garrison training, units across the force regard electromagnetic interference protection as an indispensable gateway to victory. A communications element of the Information Support Force conducted adaptability training in an unfamiliar and complex environment under conditions of intense electromagnetic interference. By constructing complex electromagnetic special situations (电磁特情), it compelled officers and soldiers to train hard in tactics for maintaining communications under jamming (抗扰保通战法), continuously improving capabilities such as rapid frequency switching, antenna erection and dismantling, and anti-jamming radio operation under heavy jamming conditions. An Air Force unit, targeting the difficulties of communications-on-the-move, rapid communications establishment, and communications under jamming (动中通、快中通、扰中通), developed response plans and established a special-situation case library to help officers and soldiers accurately analyze jamming patterns and precisely identify jamming types.

Visiting the exercise and training sites of multiple units across the armed forces, reporters found that tempering battlefield survivability has become a training priority for officers and soldiers. They consistently embed the requirements of "staying hidden, withstanding interference, and keeping links connected (藏得住行踪、抗得住干扰、保得通链路)" into every tactical action and throughout every adversarial training exercise — fighting one engagement and advancing one step further — substantively and concretely improving battlefield survivability.