Fm 31 28 Fouo Special Forces Advanced Urban Combat 1 December 1999 25 [iPhone]
The term "Advanced" in the title is key. This was not a primer on basic room clearing (which is taught in basic training); it was designed for 12-man Operational Detachment Alpha (ODA) teams operating independently or with partner forces.
Key concepts covered in the manual included:
The manual introduced the concept of "acoustic shadowing" – using the echoes between buildings to mask movement. It included decibel tables for suppressed weapons vs. background urban noise (e.g., a subway train passing at 30 mph generates 95 dB, acceptable for M4 with suppressor). The term "Advanced" in the title is key
Conventional breaching focuses on doors and windows. FM 31-28 emphasized "lateral circulation" – moving through party walls, false ceilings, and utility chases. One FOUO annex detailed a 5-pound C4 charge that could blow a discreet “mousehole” through a 12-inch reinforced concrete wall with minimal external flash (the “big voice” technique).
| Document | Date | Status | Key Change | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | FM 31-28 (FOUO) | 1 Dec 1999 | Obsolete / Superseded | First dedicated SF urban warfare doctrine | | TC 90-1 | 2008 | Obsolete | Added IED cell tactics from Iraq | | TC 18-01 | 2011 | Obsolete | Added direct action raid techniques (Bin Laden era) | | ATP 3-06.1 / MCWP 3-35.3 | 2017+ | Current | Combined arms urban ops; no longer FOUO | While the original FOUO text is not public,
The 2008 TC 90-1 explicitly acknowledged FM 31-28 as its predecessor, noting: “Portions of this training circular are adapted from FM 31-28 (FOUO), 1 Dec 99, which is no longer distributed.”
Thus, the “1 December 1999” date marks the final formal issue of that specific FOUO manual. By 2001, after 9/11, many of its TTPs were rapidly disseminated to conventional units deploying to Afghanistan and Iraq, though the FOUO caveat remained in force until the manual was fully replaced. 1 Dec 99
While the original FOUO text is not public, academic papers and later training circulars (e.g., TC 90-1, 2008) cite specific chapters. A likely outline:
Surprisingly, FM 31-28 contained a section on commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) radio-controlled aircraft being weaponized by enemy forces. This was prophetic for 2020s drone warfare. Recommendation 25 in that chapter: use a 25-foot length of monofilament fishing line suspended between two buildings to entangle low-flying drones.