text: Chapter 4
  Movement to Contact
  This chapter discusses movement to contact beginning with its general considerations.
  It then discusses organization, control measures, and conducting a movement to
  contact. It then discusses two variations of a movement to contact: search and attack
  and cordon and search. Lastly, it talks about transitioning from a movement to contact
  to another type of offensive or defensive operation.
  GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR A MOVEMENT TO CONTACT
  4-1. A movement to contact is a type of offensive operation designed to establish or regain contact to
  develop the situation. Units perform a movement to contact when the tactical situation is unclear, or the
  enemy force succeeds in breaking contact with friendly forces. A properly executed movement to contact
  develops the situation and maintains the unit’s freedom of action after establishing contact with the enemy.
  This is essential in maintaining the initiative and achieving a position of advantage. Movement to contact
  allows units to create conditions for subsequent operations. Once contact is made with an enemy force, the
  friendly force quickly transitions either to an attack, a hasty defense, or bypasses enroute to their objective.
  4-2. An enemy force’s use of terrain, operations security, and military deception operations can degrade
  the friendly forces situational understanding and require small tactical units to conduct movements to contact.
  A movement to contact employs purposeful and aggressive movement, decentralized control, and the hasty
  deployment of combined arms formations from the march. The fundamentals of a movement to contact are—
  * Focus all efforts on finding enemy forces.
  * The initial contact force should be small, mobile, self-contained, and avoid becoming decisively
  engaged by the enemy’s main body.
  * Task-organize the force and use movement formations and battle drills to deploy and attack rapidly
  in any direction.
  * Keep subordinate forces within supporting distances to facilitate gaining and maintaining contact.
  * Upon gaining contact, maintain that contact regardless of the course of action (COA) adopted.
  * Close air support, air interdiction, and counterair operations are essential to the success of large-
  scale movements to contact. Local air superiority or, at a minimum, air parity is vital to the
  operation’s success.
  4-3. A movement to contact increases the odds of a unit executing a meeting engagement. A meeting
  engagement is a combat action that occurs when a moving force engages an enemy at an unexpected
  time and place. The enemy force encountered may be either stationary or moving. A meeting engagement
  does not require both forces to be surprised. The force making unexpected contact is the one conducting a
  meeting engagement. Such encounters often occur in small-unit operations when reconnaissance has been
  ineffective. The force that reacts first to the unexpected contact generally gains an advantage over its enemy.
  4-4. A meeting engagement may also occur when opponents are aware of each other, and both decide to
  attack to obtain a tactical advantage. Additionally, a meeting engagement may occur when one force attempts
  to deploy into a hasty defense while the other force attacks before its opponent can organize an effective
  defense. No matter how the force makes contact, seizing the initiative is the overriding imperative. Prompt
  execution of battle drills at platoon level and below, and standard actions on contact for larger units, can give
  that initiative to the friendly force.