A technique called "Time on target" was developed by the British Army in the
North African campaign at the end of 1941 and early 1942 particularly for
counter-battery fire and other concentrations; it proved very effective. It relied on BBC
time signals to enable officers to synchronize their watches to the second. This avoided the use of military radio networks and the possibility of losing surprise, and eliminated the need for additional
field telephone networks in the desert. Most of the casualties in an artillery bombardment occur within the first few seconds. During those first few seconds, troops may be in the open and may not be prone. After that, enemy troops have gone prone and/or sought cover. This dramatically lessens the casualties from
shrapnel or high explosive blast by as much as 66 percent. The U.S. Army conducted a "Troop Reaction and Posture Sequencing" test in the 1970s to determine how fast soldiers in a hasty defensive position can achieve degrees of protective postures when faced with artillery fire. At time of impact, nine percent of the soldiers were prone, 33 percent were prone with some additional cover, and 58 percent were standing. However within two seconds of the first impact, only 29 percent remained standing while the majority (56 percent) were prone protected and after eight seconds, all soldiers were prone with additional protective cover. As a result, U.S. Army artillery units are trained to fire their guns in a precise order, using massed fires so that all shells would hit a target simultaneously, delivering the maximum possible damage. ==Notes==