High Altitude Warfare School

who undertake dangerous missions!

Mountain warfare is dangerous as well as adventurous! It depends upon the soldiers who undertake dangerous missions1 Mountain warfare has a prolonged history and some great generals have written about the same!

-Though the story is of High altitude warfare school (Haws) but the basic training is a must and that is undergone in Haws! There are two in Kashmir, one is Gularg and the other in Sonamarg!

-So welcome to the world of snow and become aware of the fact that chilled feet can also climb and run!

-I was going through an extract of Bonaparte Napoleons’ Art of war and this is what he said about the

-’Among mountains there are everywhere numerous positions extremely strong by nature, which you should abstain from attacking. The genius of this kind of war consists in occupying camps either on the flank or the rear of the enemy, So as to leave him no alternative but to withdraw from his position without fighting; and to move him farther back, or to make him come out and attack you. In mountain war the attacking party acts under a disadvantage. Even in offensive war, the merit lies in having only defensive conflicts and obliging your enemy to become the assailant.

-In mountain warfare a few things do matter: appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak. The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.

-In the mountains it is a necessity! Though I could have put these words in my own language, they are original because I wanted to maintain the originality of the substance I wanted to produce!

-First let us discuss the mountain warfare:

-Mountain warfare or alpine warfare is warfare in mountains or similarly rough terrain. The term encompasses military operations affected by the terrain, hazards, and factors of combat and movement through rough terrain, as well as the strategies and tactics used by military forces in these situations and environments.

-Mountain ranges are of strategic importance since they often act as a natural border and may also be the origin of a water source such as the Golan Heights. Attacking a prepared enemy position in mountain terrain generally requires a greater ratio of attacking soldiers to defending soldiers than a war conducted on level ground.

-Mountains present natural hazards such as lightning, strong gusts of wind, rockfalls, avalanches, snowpacks, ice, extreme cold, and glaciers with their crevasses; in these ways, it can be similar to cold-weather warfare. The generally uneven terrain and the slow pace of troop and material movements are additional threats to combatants. Movement, reinforcements, and medical evacuation up and down steep slopes and areas in which even pack animals cannot reach involves an enormous exertion of energy.

-There has to be a history behind everything:

-History’

-The first that strikes is the Second Punic War

In 218 BC, the Carthaginian army commander Hannibal marched troops, cavalry and African elephants across the Alps in an effort to conquer Rome by approaching it from north of the Italian Peninsula. The Roman government was complacent because the Alps were viewed as a secure natural obstacle to would-be invaders. In December 218 BC, the Carthaginian forces defeated Roman troops, in the north, with the use of elephants. Many elephants did not survive the cold weather and disease typical of the European climate. Hannibal’s army fought Roman troops in Italy for 15 years but failed to conquer Rome. Carthage was ultimately defeated by Roman general Scipio Africanus at Zama in North Africa in 202 BC.

-General Suvorov crossing the St. Gotthard Pass in the Alps in 1799

-The term mountain warfare is said to have come about in the Middle Ages after the European monarchies found it difficult to fight the armies of the Old Swiss Confederacy in the Alps. The Swiss fought in smaller units and took vantage points against a huge unmaneuverable army. Similar styles of attack and defence were later employed by guerrillas, partisans and irregulars, who hid in the mountains after an attack, which made it challenging for an army of regulars to fight back. In Napoleon Bonaparte’s Italian campaign, Alexander Suvorov’s Italian and Swiss expedition and the 1809 rebellion in Tyrol, mountain warfare played a large role.

-World War I

-Italian Front in 1915–1917: eleven Battles of the Isonzo and Asiago offensive. In blue are initial Italian occupations.

Mountain warfare came to the fore once again during World War I, when some of the nations that were involved in the war had mountain divisions that had not been tested. The Austro-Hungarian defence repelled Italian attacks by taking advantage of the terrain in the Julian Alps and the Dolomites, where frostbite and avalanches proved deadlier than bullets. During the summer of 1918, the Battle of San Matteo took place on the Italian front and was fought at the highest elevation of any during the war. In December 1914, another offensive was launched by the Ottoman supreme commander Enver Pasha with 95,000–190,000 troops against the Russians in the Caucasus. Insisting on a frontal attack against Russian positions in the mountains in the heart of winter, the result was devastating, and Never lost 86% of his forces.

-World War II

-Examples of mountain warfare used during World War II include the Battles of Narvik, Battle of the Caucasus, Kokoda Track campaign, Battle of Attu, Operation Rentier, Operation Gauntlet, Operation Encore, and the British defence at the Battle of Hong Kong.

One ambush tactic used against the Germans during the Battles of Narvik utilised hairpin bends. Defenders would position themselves above them and open fire when attackers reached a certain point below, parallel to themselves. This would force the attackers to retreat, to continue under fire, or to attempt to climb the mountain another way. The tactic could be planned in advance, or employed by a retreating force.

Another tactic utilised was the ‘ascending platoon attack’. Attackers would scout higher enemy positions from the ground, aided by bad weather or poor visibility. A light machine gun team would open fire towards the high enemy position from a distance, offering cover for the remaining soldiers to gradually advance.

-Kashmir conflicts

-Indian military checkpoint in Ladakh

Since the Partition of India in 1947, India and Pakistan have been in conflict over the Kashmir region. They have fought two wars and numerous additional skirmishes or border conflicts in the region.[9] Kashmir is located in the Himalayas, the highest mountain range in the world. The first hostilities between the two nations, during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947, showed that both were ill-equipped to fight in biting cold, let alone at the highest altitudes in the world. During the Sino-Indian War of 1962, hostilities broke out between India and China in the same area.

The subsequent Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 between India and Pakistan was mainly fought in Kashmir’s valleys, rather than the mountains themselves, but several mountain battles took place. The Siachen Conflict (along Saltoro Mustgah) has been witness to battles, operations and skirmishes where many posts higher than 5000m have been captured or fought over. The fighting here has been concentrated on the peaks, ridges and passes of Saltoro with India occupying most of the ridge line whilst the Pakistan army to the west along the bases.

During the Kargil War (1999), Indian forces sought to flush out opponents who had captured high mountain posts. That proxy war was the only modern war that was fought exclusively in the mountains. After the Kargil War, the Indian Army implemented specialist training on artillery use in the mountains, where ballistic projectiles have different characteristics than at sea level.

Finally this is true: If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle. And let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.

In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity! Supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting.

High Altitude Warfare School: Where Indian jawans are trained to survive in Siachen!

-When in trouble or lost, next to God remember HAWS,” screams a large board as one enters the main building of the High Altitude Warfare School.

When in trouble or lost, next to God remember HAWS,” screams a large board as one enters the main building of the High Altitude Warfare School, or HAWS, at Gulmarg, after a picturesque 45 minute uphill drive through narrow, slippery roads from the foothills of Apharwat peak.

The world’s highest battlefield, Siachen, can be unforgiving even for the toughest; frequent blizzards and sub-zero temperatures make it one of the most hostile places to live in, let alone fight. But a border conflict with Pakistan has forced Indian army to occupy the 100 km long Saltoro Range in the Siachen region, and it is at HAWS Gulmarg — situated close to 9,000 feet above sea level where army men learn to survive and fight in the world’s highest battleground at 20,000 feet.

-Several members of the 200 strong team that carried out the Siachen avalanche rescue operation this week had their training at HAWS. The rescue team found one survivor (who subsequently died) and extricated nine bodies six days after an avalanche buried a 10-member army post. HAWS is the Indian Army’s top training establishment for special operations in super high altitude, glaciated and snow bound areas. Operating from three different locations in Kashmir, the school conducts winter warfare courses at Gulmarg, mountain warfare courses at Sonamarg and ice craft at Machoi across Zojila.

Nestled in the beautiful Gulmarg valley, it presents a beautiful and serene picture but within its campus lies a different world which puts the human body and spirit to test. Clearly, what they do at HAWS leaves a lasting impression on one’s body and mind. “It is one of the toughest courses that an army man undergoes,” the commandant of the school, said, citing a dropout rate of 30%-40%.

The High Altitude Warfare School (HAWS) is a defence service training and research establishment of the Indian Army. In 1948, the Indian Army established a ski school in Gulmarg that later became the High Altitude Warfare School, which specialises in snow–craft and winter warfare.[2] It is located in an area which is prone to avalanches. Selected soldiers from the US, UK, Germany and other countries visit regularly for specialist training.

The birth of the High Altitude Warfare School (HAWS) of Indian Army in 1948 can be directly attributed to the loss of Gilgit-Baltistan in the Siege of Skardu to Pakistan in 1947–1948 Indo-Pakistani War. The school was established in December 1948 by General K S Thimayya, then holding the rank of Brigadier. It was initially known as the 19 Infantry Division Ski School. During the winter of 1949–1950, the school was redesignated as a Command Establishment and renamed as the Winter Warfare School. On 8 April 1962, it was upgraded to a Category A Training Establishment and adopted its current name.

HAWS offers two training programmes, the Mountain Warfare course and the Winter Warfare course. The former course is conducted in Sonamarg between May and October each year. The latter course is conducted in Gulmarg between January and April. The two courses train personnel in High Altitude warfare, counter intelligence and survival skills. Ice-craft is taught at Machoi across Zojila. Army personnel deployed to the Siachen Glacier and to other high altitude forward posts on the Himalayan borders go through the courses. HAWS is the nodal instructional facility for specialised training and dissemination of approved doctrines in mountain, high altitude and snow warfare. The training programs at HAWS are open to personnel of the armed forces of friendly countries.

You need to be fit! On the trot just looking upwards and not downwards if you are a mountain warrior! HAWS teaches you that!