Talk:Peel (tactic)

"line"

I suggest the term "column" should be used to avoid the confusion that might be brought by the conflicting terms "line of battle" and "line formation". The former resembles | while the latter resembles __. The article uses "line" frequently to refer to the line of battle, which in the context of small unit infantry tactics may be confusing.D Boland (talk) 22:23, 16 March 2009 (UTC)

I'm changing that now, as it confused me as well. 72.200.151.13 (talk) 00:24, 26 September 2015 (UTC)

Is this actually notable?

There seems to be only one citation on this page. Is this actually a notable topic with more coverage? Ascendingrisingharmonising (talk) 13:25, 9 April 2022 (UTC)

I've tagged the page appropriately. Perhaps somebody who knows the subject better than I can source this. BusterD (talk) 14:15, 9 April 2022 (UTC)

Dubious

Let's assume a squad of 9 men (typical US Army, 2 fire teams). If they're 'strung out' in a column 2 wide, (and 4-5) long, then after the first cycle of 'peel' (if not before), they'll be spaced 1 meter apart (along the long axis) and 10 m first to last. Each cycle will move them 10 meters. I'm only guessing at speed of a cycle, but if the soldiers on average take 10 seconds to move from front to back and begin suppressing fire, then that's 90 seconds per cycle or 10 meters every 90 seconds or 0.4 kph. I have trouble believing that snail-like speed is the actual rate of retreat. I'd like to see a reliable source for this claim (of 1 meter behind the farthest from the front). Also - I assume that 'column' means the group is moving ... or *was* moving ... in a pattern which had a long axis and that axis was the direction of travel. It isn't obvious to me that that term is well-enough understood to be assumed known by the reader. Finally, why would they be in the form of a column when engaging the enemy? It's wildly ineffective and since only the front has a clear field of fire, pretty dangerous as well.98.21.215.110 (talk) 21:15, 7 April 2024 (UTC)

Speaking as a former infantryman, you don't always get to dictate when you make contact with the enemy. The claim of 1 meter beyond the furthest teammate is simply wrong, as you suspect -- we were trained to move to the next closest point of cover that maintains sight with the former last-man, while still allowing for an adequate field of fire to support the rest of the team as they peel. Also, you only peel far enough back to remove yourself from visual contact with the enemy, after which point you move out as a squad.⇒SWATJester ^{Shoot Blues, Tell VileRat!} 21:44, 7 April 2024 (UTC)

I just took a big crack at cleaning up this page -- moved it to just "Peel" instead of Center Peel, added several more references, and rewrote the text. It's in better shape now, but could still use some examples from modern military documentation (FMs specifically).⇒SWATJester ^{Shoot Blues, Tell VileRat!} 22:57, 7 April 2024 (UTC)