In weaponry, a kill box is a three-dimensional target area, defined to facilitate the integration of coordinated

joint A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw ...

weapons fire.Air Force Doctrine Document 3-03, Counterland Operations, 11 September 2006 (Change 1 incorporated 28 July 2011
Pages 85-88.Joint Pub 3-09, Joint Fire Support, 30 June 2010
Pages 69-70.MAJ James E. Mullin III, AR; The JFA: Redefining the Kill Box, FIRES Bulletin Mar-Apr 2008
Pages 38-41. The space is defined by an area reference system, but could follow terrain features, be located by grid coordinates or a radius from a center point.

Definition

It is a joint forces coordination measure enabling air assets to engage surface targets without needing further coordination with commanders and without terminal attack control. Such a joint coordination measure can help commanders focus the effort of air and indirect fire assets, and also restrict the trajectories and effects of surface-to-surface fires. There may be no-fire areas (NFAs), restricted operations areas (ROAs), and airspace coordination areas (ACAs) included. No friendly ground forces should go into a kill box unless covered by a no-fire area. A type of fire support coordinating measure (FSCM), a kill box is often defined by a grid reference system based on lines of

latitude In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north po ...

and

longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east– west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek let ...

superimposed Superimposition is the placement of one thing over another, typically so that both are still evident. Graphics In graphics, superimposition is the placement of an image or video on top of an already-existing image or video, usually to add to t ...

upon a map of an

area of operation In U.S. armed forces parlance, an area of operations (AO) is an operational area defined by the force commander for land, air, and naval forces conduct of combat and non-combat activities. Areas of operations do not typically encompass the entire o ...

. Each square of the grid may be sub-divided into smaller boxes, each of which may carry its own level of permission or restriction on the use of air-to-surface or surface-to-surface weapons. First developed by the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territor ...

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ar ...

in the late 1980s, the technique gained notoriety through its use during the first

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

(1991). The U.S. Air Force further refined tactics, techniques, and procedures of kill box employment throughout the 1990s, leading to more efficient prosecution of targets. During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, they were once again used in support of the initial invasion. Use of kill boxes is now part of Joint U.S. Doctrine and is used by many of the U.S.'s allies.

Types

* Blue: Permits

air-to-surface An air-to-surface missile (ASM) or air-to-ground missile (AGM) is a missile designed to be launched from military aircraft at targets on land or sea. There are also unpowered guided glide bombs not considered missiles. The two most common prop ...

fires in the Kill Box without further coordination or deconflictionInteragency Airspace Coordination Guide, Chapter 7: ''Airspace Deconfliction,'' 29 July 2003
Ruth Walker, Feeling conflicted about deconfliction, ''Christian Science Monitor,'' 22 October 2015
with friendly forces. * Purple: Reduces the coordination requirements for air-to-surface fires, while still allowing surface component commanders to employ

surface-to-surface A surface-to-surface missile (SSM) or ground-to-ground missile (GGM) is a missile designed to be launched from the ground or the sea and strike targets on land or at sea. They may be fired from hand-held or vehicle mounted devices, from fixed ins ...

fire. It allows the maximum use of joint fires, creating a synergistic effect and maximum potential for neutralizing enemy forces.

Misconceptions

While engagement authority is automatically granted by the establishment of a kill box, it does not relieve

weapons system A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting Hunting is the huma ...

operators of the responsibility for complying with requirements such as commander's designated target priority, positive identification (PID), collateral damage assessments,

rules of engagement Rules of engagement (ROE) are the internal rules or directives afforded military forces (including individuals) that define the circumstances, conditions, degree, and manner in which the use of force, or actions which might be construed as pr ...

(ROE), and special instructions (SPINS).

References

Footnotes

Citations

*LTC Karl E. Wingenbach
Kill Box: the newest FSCM
Field Artillery Magazine JUL-AUG 2005, Pages 13–15
Army (Field Manual) FM 3-09
Field Artillery Operations and Fire Support April 2014, Pages 121-123 *The use of kill boxes may be considered to fall under the general category of ''Joint Targeting''. This broader topic is addressed here
Joint Publication 3-60
Joint Targeting, 31 January 2013.
Inside the Kill Box: Fighting the Gulf War (2001, Discovery Channel, 1h44m)
This documentary film defined the concept of the kill box in the context of ''Operation Desert Storm''. (This film is also discussed i
this ''Los Angeles Times'' interview
conducted by Susan King, of the documentary's writer/producer/director, Kurt Sayenga; 13 January 2001.) {{Refend Military tactics