[Desert Fox]

Hi,

from a while I am using a special technique of navigation, very useful for a patrol.I would like to know if it exists.I did not see this technique in any book or technical manual.

I called this technique the <<back-bearing technique>>:

To use this technique you need 2 persons or more.
1 person stays behind.The other(nav) aim and pick a general direction.He goes the farther he can, just before he losts contact with the first person.At that point, he aim, but not with the north in north, but with the south in north.The result is a back bearing aiming.
After that he take note of the side displacement (let say 7 meters to the left).Now he just compensates this displacement.He can take another aim to make sure.When align, he gives a sign or any other signal to the 1st person.This 1st person joins the 2nd(nav).
Now the process made again.

A good thing with this is that you dont have to send a person on the front, who dont sees the aiming.

That's it.
there is another technique with 3 persons.Very useful in a situation you dont have a compass, and you start your aim with some clock or shadow technique.
The technique is simple: This is like a scale.1st and 2nd persons stay behind.The 3rd person goes the farther he can.When the 1st and 2nd persons are aligned, the 1st person (the most behind) goes on the front, the farther he cans.He does again the same thing.
I guess with a pair of binoc you can aim very accurately.Only one binoc is needed.When the 1st(behind) goes on the front, he picks the binoc from the last front guy.
With painted sticks it would be very accurate.

That's it for the 2nd technique.

I made a special drill for a patrol, with the back-bearing technique:

The main body stay behind.The nav and another guy,go on the front, the farther they can.The nav do the back-bearing technique.The purpose of the other guy is to watch and act as security.He just follows the general direction of the nav and watch, enable the nav to do his job.


The only bad thing of the back-bearing technique is that it's slow.The other bad thing is that this is useless with GPS.But this is ,,another'' trick in case of...