Motorbike Warfare - Syria was conquered by rebels on motorbikes and in pickups, utilizing drones

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Posted on 12/26/2024 6:02:10 AM PST by MtnClimber

Circa 1997, I was in Panama, on the Caribbean side, getting my boat ready to transit the canal to the Pacific.

I was walking from Colon's old so-called yacht club (now long gone) through an industrial port area to get to Colon City. When I was passing about 20 fallow acres, I witnessed a training exercise by a dozen or so off-road motorbikes in green paint, each with a pair of uniformed soldiers on them. The soldiers riding on the back each carried a carbine.

While I watched from a few hundred yards away, they did a "reverse starburst," that is, they rode into the center of the field from all points of the compass. They must have been waiting for a "go" signal. They rode into a circle formation like Indians surrounding a wagon train, made a few rotations while tightening the circle, then all stopped and laid their bikes down and formed a perimeter, guns pointing out, using their motorbikes as cover. After a minute they all pulled up their bikes, remounted, and did a starburst exit again in all directions. (It's difficult for one man to raise a motorcycle weighing about 300 pounds, but it’s not hard for 2 soldiers, especially with practice.)

I had just witnessed a military motorcycle training exercise, and it was unforgettable. This was my initial introduction to “motorbike warfare.” A serious fighting force can “appear from nowhere” in just a minute.

Over the years I followed stories in the news, mostly coming out of Latin America, about motorbike crime. Two men on a motorbike became infamous as a very dangerous combination. The 2nd man riding on the back can hide a weapon inside his jacket, then fire it from the moving bike, or he can dismount rapidly, commit a crime, remount the bike and take off with his partner.

Assassinations took place where the rider in back would fire a compact submachine gun like a Mac-10 at a corporate executive alongside the bike in his luxury sedan. This became so commonplace that in some cities at various times, two men riding on a motorbike was outlawed. And today this scourge continues, with armed robberies committed by criminal motorbike teams, and “urban youths” doing street takeovers, defying police orders to disperse and causing general mayhem. YouTube is full of wild videos of motorbike marauders in action.

Now we have all watched the conquest of Syria, and a crucial factor in its incredibly rapid success was the employment of dozens of “platoons” (for want of a better word) of men on motorbikes, supported by pickup trucks carrying mounted machine guns and extra fuel for the bikes.

This is what a motorbike “victory parade” looks like as these formations enter a defeated town. We know it’s a victory parade, because the riders are unconcerned about being bunched up in close proximity. If they felt any threat, they’d be widely dispersed, and not presenting a juicy target to enemy fire.

The typically-seen bikes are Chinese-made Loncin 200cc dirt bikes. Using a similar Yamaha 200 for comparison, they have a top speed of around 70mph on flat pavement, but this would be an unusual situation for these off-road bikes, which are typically carrying two riders over unpaved terrain.

Their range carrying 2 men will be under 100 miles, but they are typically followed or accompanied by the ubiquitous Toyota Hi-Lux pickups, or similar vehicles.

While tanks and APCs can literally be observed from outer space, pickup trucks are in common civilian use everywhere, and only present as weapons of war when heavy machine guns are mounted. In any case they are extremely easy to hide in urban or rural areas, and do not individually present as a high-value target worth an air strike, and besides, they are moving too fast to locate, acquire, and strike. By the time that they’re spotted and reported, they’re already gone, operating well inside their enemy’s “OODA Loop.” (Observe, Orient, Decide, Act)

Now onto the “Syrian rebel” motorbike soldiers.

Two men on a motorbike can each carry personal weapons. Both can fight dismounted, or the rider can get off while the driver continues to maneuver. The man on back can also be carrying an anti-tank rocket or a MANPAD missile.

Believe it or not, these light dirt bikes are also carrying heavy machine guns. A DShKa or DShKm 12.7mm HMG plus an extra 100 rounds (50 per ammo box) still weighs less than a second rider on the back. Obviously, the motorbike must be stationary to fire the Dushka, but such a bike can stop, rip off 50 rounds at a police station or military checkpoint, then the biker can remount and take off in just a minute. This gives almost no reaction time for the defenders to locate and target the source of the firing, because it’s already left and is on the way to a new position. Motorbike warfare is all about being mobile and agile, and presenting a very small target for enemy ISR, especially when the units are dispersed and constantly on the move.

In the next photo we see a machine gun motorbike laid down against a berm for support and cover from return fire.

Supporting trucks can carry much more firepower than a “mere” 12.7mm, or in U.S. terms, a fifty caliber. Here, a truck is mounted with a ZU-23. These are anti-aircraft guns, but they are also used for direct ground attack. They can even be used as an indirect-fire weapon beyond visual range, with the spotting being done by drones or motorbike reconnaissance elements far out in front.

The supporting pickup trucks will carry extra ammunition and fuel for the motorbikes, greatly extending their combined operational range. They’ll also carry water and rations for the motorbike warriors.

The “Syrian rebels” also had another trick up their sleeves. Ukrainian “trainers” came down to help the rebels in their war against Russia’s ally, the Assad regime. The drones were used for ISR as well as direct FPV attack, and caught the Syrian Army completely by surprise. This example shows how any country could be taken by surprise by the sudden appearance of advanced drones used against their homeland. Think about all the “mystery drones” reported over New Jersey and elsewhere.

The extremely rapid speed of advance of a “motorbike army” supported by pickups and drones should be getting the attention of military planners around the world. These “Syrian rebels” are not rag-tag bands of guerrilla fighters. They’re very well armed and trained. In the photo below they are being resupplied from a truck.

“Okay, Matt, so what? I don’t live in Syria! I don’t give a damn what happens in Syria.”

Here’s why you should care. Every item in all the photos above can fit into standard 20-foot shipping containers, including the ZU-23 anti-aircraft gun. The pickup trucks don’t need to be hidden, because they are omnipresent around the world. Just hide them in a garage or fill them with junk and old furniture as “cover for action” to move them into place for an attack.

Why 20 foot cargo containers? Because they don’t need 18-wheel tractor trailers to haul them, but can be loaded and tipped off anywhere. Trucks like these could roll down your street and you would not give them a second thought. If you’re in a hurry, you don’t even need a special tip-off truck. Just chain the container to a big tree or something structural, and drive the common flat bed truck forward. How did the “Syrian rebels” achieve such a tactical surprise? I’m telling you how......SNIP

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1 posted on 12/26/2024 6:02:10 AM PST by MtnClimber

To: MtnClimber

2 posted on 12/26/2024 6:03:16 AM PST by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)

To: MtnClimber

3 posted on 12/26/2024 6:07:58 AM PST by rlmorel ("A people that elect corrupt politicians are not victims...but accomplices." George Orwell)

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