World War II Combat Reconnaissance Tactics

The purposes and means of reconnaissance

'Reconnaissance' is the activity of reconnoitring to collect information through surveillance and examination of an area or specific site, or of enemy forces and their activities. The focus of intelligence and reconnaissance varied greatly depending on the level of command: the lower the echelon, the more detailed and precise the information had to be, and the smaller its scope and area of interest (although higher command echelons did sometimes need detailed intelligence on specifics).

At theatre level, the commander was concerned with the overall numbers of the enemy's forces, and with his capability to produce and transport materiel, weapons and equipment to the combat zone. At army group and field army levels, commanders were concerned with the enemy's long-term objectives, his abilities to shape the battlefield by shifting his forces, the number of available divisions, and the logistics to support them. The corps commander was looking at how many regiments and supporting assets the enemy could field, and what forces were available to reinforce his defence or exploit a successful offensive. Division commanders focused on the number of battalions, artillery pieces and tanks facing them, on road networks, and the size and nature of bodies of water. A regimental/brigade commander was interested in what was on the next hill, if bridges could support his tanks, and if there were obstacles that could slow his advance.

A battalion commander was really only interested in the enemy forces he was immediately engaged with, whether the fields were too muddy for off-road movement, and how long he had before the morning fog burned off to expose his moving troops. The company commander was concerned about snipers in the woods ahead of him, if his mortars could penetrate the roof of pillboxes, if his men could wade the streams, and if his patrols would leave tell-tale tracks through dew-covered grass.

While reconnaissance is usually imagined as carried out by patrols on the ground, it can also be conducted by examining maps and aerial photographs, by electronic interception of radio traffic, by long-range surveillance using optical devices, by aerial reconnaissance, and by observations from watercraft. Reconnaissance by ground or aircraft radar was then in its infancy, but saw some use late in World War II. Information was even collected by sound detection and ranging, especially when detecting artillery but also from the sounds made by armoured vehicles, truck traffic and other enemy activity.