text: Chapter 4
  Field Artillery Operations
  This chapter provides a brief overview of the FA and its role and employment in large-
  scale combat operations. Section I describes the role of the FA. Section II covers FA
  organizations at echelons above brigade Section III covers FA capabilities in depth,
  Section IV covers FA organization for combat, Section V discusses key considerations
  for combat and Section VI covers fire direction.
  SECTION I – THE ROLE OF THE FIELD ARTILLERY
  4-1. The role of the FA is to destroy, neutralize, or suppress the enemy by cannon, rocket, and missile fire
  and to integrate and synchronize all FS assets into operations.
  4-2. The FA, as an integral part of the FS system, is responsible for participating in the planning,
  preparation, and execution of lethal and nonlethal effects delivered by FA cannons, rockets, and missiles at
  the strategic, operational, and tactical levels. This often includes simultaneous FA fires in support of decisive,
  shaping, and sustaining operations, including counterfires. Deep fires, beyond the boundaries of tactical
  operations under joint force control, may involve the delivery of operational-level fires directly supporting
  the JFCs campaign plan. Such fires may have potential strategic effects.
  4-3. FA contributes to operations by massing fires in space and time on single or multiple targets with
  precision, near-precision, and area fire capabilities. The synchronized use of massed or selectively applied
  FA fires in support of simultaneous decisive, shaping, and sustaining operations is intended to weaken the
  enemy at all echelons and deny them the opportunity to hide or rest – effectively contributing to efforts to
  impose multiple dilemmas on the enemy. FA can rapidly shift fires throughout the AO in support of the
  scheme of maneuver, and to counter unforeseen enemy reaction to create the supported commander's desired
  effects. FA cannons are classified according to caliber as mm:
  * Light - 120-mm and less.
  * Medium - 121 to 160-mm.
  * Heavy - 161 to 210-mm.
  * Very heavy - greater than 210-mm.
  * Rockets - 298-mm.
  * Missiles - 607-mm.
  4-4. FA is the supported commander's principal means for providing continuous and responsive indirect
  fires in support of large-scale combat operations. It can achieve surprise with the instantaneous delivery of
  high volumes of fire without warning. As such, it is the most potent and responsive, 24-hour, all weather
  combat multiplier available to supported commanders.
  4-5. Organic, assigned, attached, or OPCON FA delivery assets include cannon, rocket, missile, and
  hypersonic systems that range from tactical to strategic areas. FA provides continuously available fires under
  all weather conditions and in all types of terrain. FA can shift and mass fires rapidly without having to
  displace.
  4-6. FA limitations include a firing signature that makes firing units vulnerable to an electromagnetic
  signature susceptible to enemy electronic warfare interference and detection by enemy TA assets, limited
  self-defense capability against ground and air attacks, and limited ability to engage moving targets.