Target Identification. Before missions are selected, Chua’s Intelligence Fusion Team researches potential targets. From the Bunker on Lascar Island they scour the internet and government databases searching for situations that demand justice.
There are two key criteria. First, there needs to be a lack of will or capability by governments to resolve the situation. Second, the situation needs to be within PRIMAL’s capability to resolve. Given PRIMAL’s small size, there are limits to what it can achieve.
Potential targets are then developed by collecting actionable intelligence. Ivan and his Blades do the HUMINT groundwork while Flash uses hacking and covert access to government intelligence databases to fill out the threat picture.
Examples targets and issues include:
- Russian Mafia and the exploitation of slave labor (PRIMAL Origin);
- A Ukrainian arms dealer and weapons proliferation (PRIMAL Unleashed);
- The Government of Sudan and a Chinese oil conglomerate sponsoring civil conflict and war criminals (PRIMAL Vengeance);
- The Yakuza, human trafficking, and sex slavery (PRIMAL Fury);
- Corrupt CIA officers, government officials, and contractors, narco cartels, and unethical mining practices (PRIMAL Reckoning);
- War criminals, corrupt politicians, and organized crime (PRIMAL Inception), and
- Islamic terrorism and corrupt law enforcement in India (PRIMAL Mirza)
Target Selection. Chua’s intelligence Fusion Team presents the most suitable targets to PRIMAL’s monthly ‘Targeting Board’. Tariq, Vance, and Chua prioritize resources and select missions. All three have the power of veto if they don’t approve of a target. The Fusion Team then develops selected targets further and Vance starts to plan an operational strategy.
Note that there are lots of missions that are dear to my heart but are not necessarily suitable for a PRIMAL novel. For example, dealing with immoral greed-ridden corporations pushing genetically modified foods or conducting pharmaceutical experiments on vulnerable communities. Not all injustices have to be resolved with violence and no one wants to read an action novel with no action.
TARGET NEUTRALIZATION
Fig. 6 – Ice and Vance, Kosovo 1999, illustrated by Marc Lee
PRIMAL uses both kinetic and non-kinetic targeting strategies. Kinetic is the application of violence against key adversaries. This includes assassination, close quarter combat, proxy guerilla warfare and tactical airstrike. Non-kinetic tactics includes deception, influence, bribery, theft, and blackmail. Often they are combined to neutralize a target or force it to modify its behavior. Below are some examples from the PRIMAL stories. Most are based on actual historic situations or emerging technologies.
Kinetic Examples
Assassination. In PRIMAL Origin Mitch shoots a Russian Mafia boss from the deck of a luxury motor-yacht. The motor-yacht was moored a few hundred feet from boss’s seaside resort and he was killed by .50 cal round while he lounged by his pool. There are similarities between this mission and an assassination of a Syrian Army officer in 2008. The Syrian General was reportedly killed at his seaside chalet by an Israeli sniper firing from a motor-yacht moored offshore.
Close Quarter Battle. In PRIMAL Fury the CAT conducts an air assault from a Mi-17 helicopter. They swoop down on the European castle where Bishop and Saneh are detained and proceed to shoot their way through criminal gunmen until they rescue the pair. This method of ‘vertical envelopment’ is a common tactic employed by Special Forces across the globe.
Proxy Guerilla Warfare. In PRIMAL Vengeance the team trains, equips, and mentors a South Sudanese militia and uses them to attack a base of Janjaweed fighters that had been terrorizing the region.
Airstrike. In PRIMAL Unleashed a platoon of Chechen mercenaries are destroyed by close air support from the Pain Train. The highly modified Il-76 transporter unleashes a barrage of precision-guided Viper Strike munitions that destroy the Chechens’ bunkers. This gunship concept is now currently used in the various Special Operations C-130s that the US military have converted into fire support platforms such as the MC-130W Dragon Spear.
Non-Kinetic Examples
Kidnapping/Deception. In PRIMAL Vengeance Bishop is captured by a Chinese oil conglomerate and PRIMAL retaliates by kidnapping the son of the CEO. Saneh seduces the son and extracts him with the aid of Chua. They also use social media facial recognition software to identify another young Chinese man who looks remarkably similar to the CEO’s son. A prisoner exchange takes place with the look-alike, leaving PRIMAL with the CEO’s actual son to use for subsequent negotiations.
Ruse. In PRIMAL Fury the team leak information to the police to force them to lay siege to a Yakuza stronghold. Before the Yakuza can bribe or influence the police a PRIMAL sniper fires shots at the police narrowly missing them. This is combined with the team impersonating a Yakuza member over the phone and threatening the police commander. The police tactical unit is thus goaded into attacking the Yakuza creating a diversion for PRIMAL to infiltrate the stronghold.
Theft. In PRIMAL Nemesis the team uses digital espionage and interrogation to steal a corporation’s liquid cash assets and deny them the ability to conduct unjust activities. This funding is then redirected into a number of non-for-profit organizations and a PRIMAL emergency fund.
Blackmail. In PRIMAL Reckoning the team kidnaps a corrupt police chief who is an intensely proud individual and prolific womanizer. They drug him and make a homosexual sex video. The imagery is used to blackmail him to cease supporting the target.
TRAINING
Yes, at times PRIMAL operators appear to be almost superhuman; the books would be boring otherwise. But, it doesn’t come without a lot of hard work and time on the tools. In most of the books PRIMAL operatives conduct both physical training as well as individual and team skills development.
Training Facilities. Lascar Island has extensive training facilities that include the kill house and ranges in the bottom level of the Bunker. Close Quarter Battle skills are a staple of the PRIMAL team as well as individual and small team tactics, weapon proficiency, and conceal carry engagement.
Above ground, the island facilitates jungle warfare training as well as a broad range of insertion skills that include fast roping, HALO, HAHO, and static line parachuting as well as surface and subsurface maritime operations. The team trains regularly on all of the PRIMAL airframes and the equipment located in Warmart.
Urban espionage, HUMINT, and surveillance/counter-surveillance skills are practiced off the island, usually in cities similar to where PRIMAL anticipates to be operating in the near future.
Specialist Skills. PRIMAL operatives are continuously developing specialist skills such as languages, pilot training, breaching, counter-espionage, espionage, offensive driving, etc. PRIMAL usually draws on the skill sets of its operatives to cross train each other. They are also continuously learning to use the latest weapons and equipment.
When required PRIMAL will send operatives on specialist civilian courses. When this occurs the intelligence team develops in-depth cover stories and alternate identities. However, the preference is to conduct all training in-house.
LOGISTICS AND PROCUREMENT
Logistics and procurement is not the most interesting of topics, which is probably why it doesn’t rate much of mention in the books. However, they are critical to PRIMAL’s operations. A buddy of mine who’s a log guy once said, “No one wants to talk to me till they need something.” Fortunately PRIMAL’s low signature, small footprint, operations mean they don’t often need to talk to the log guy.
Logistics. PRIMAL kinetic operations lean toward short duration high intensity conflict. As a rule they carry in what they need. When resupply of vital equipment, ammunition, food and water, is required, it is generally deployed from their air support assets or sourced locally. That’s probably enough said about log, yeah?
Procurement. Procurement is one of the greatest failings of modern military forces. Procurement organizat
ions are generally horrendously overweight beasts that make ill-informed decisions and then tries to shove crappy systems, weapons, and equipment down the throats of soldiers, sailors, marines, and airpersons who know exactly what they need to do they job. PRIMAL procurement is nothing like this.
Mitch essentially runs procurement with a blank check from Tariq. If team members want it or Mitch thinks it’s awesome he uses his sources to purchase and clandestinely ship it to the island. Then, if it doesn’t come up to standard, or he thinks it could be better, he simply modifies it as he sees fit.
Most of PRIMAL’s weapons and equipment are sourced through a Ukrainian arms dealer or through Tariq’s contacts in the UAE government. Cutting edge technology is purchased using the UAE military as the end user and skimming off the required units to PRIMAL. Ivan, Chua’s lead blade, is also sometimes tasked to source hard to get items.
Repair of critical equipment is conducted in Warmart. Where Mitch cannot fix something it is destroyed and a replacement procured. All weapons and equipment have serial numbers and other identifying features removed.
WEAPONS
PRIMAL equips its operatives with weapons individually selected and customized. Unlike military units, it is less influenced by supply chain constraints or economy of scale. It does not use the 5.56mm round due to its poor performance in suppressed applications. It also doesn’t have to take into account poor training or risk-adverse political decisions. For example, unlike the NYPD, PRIMAL would never force its personnel to use pistols with abnormally heavy triggers that compromise accuracy and weapon effectiveness.
Fig. 7 – Integrally suppressed Tavor
Small Arms. PRIMAL operatives conduct covert operations; they aim to neutralize targets without being detected. For ammunition, they favor rounds that are effective at subsonic velocities; 300 AAC Blackout for carbines and .45ACP for handguns. The most common carbine is a custom 300BLK integrally suppressed Tavor (see Figure 7 above). However, some operatives prefer a Sig MCX or AAC Honey Badger. For a pistol most operatives use HK or Glocks, however Bishop prefers Beretta even though Mitch maintains that it’s a lady’s gun.
Larger weapons like machine guns, grenade launchers, and sniper rifles, are selected considering their ability to be transported covertly. A weapon’s ability to break down or fold/collapse is critical for PRIMAL ops. The Windrunner sniper rifle is used in a number of PRIMAL books due to its ability to be quickly broken down into a compact package (see Figure 8 below). Additionally the Neopup PAW-20, a compact grenade launcher, is also favored.
When operating in a mentoring role operatives may use weapons similar to that carried by the indigenous forces. For PRIMAL Vengeance this was an upgraded version of the AK-103 assault rifle.
Fig. 8 – Windrunner Nemesis sniper rifle
Optics. Optical technology is continuously evolving and Mitch ensures the team has the latest equipment. In PRIMAL Reckoning Mirza is using a digital scope on his G28 marksman’s rifle. An evolved version of the technology first used in the Tracking Point and Elcan Digital Hunting Scope (as seen below in Figure 9), it accesses most of its functionality through the iPRIMAL smartphone. The custom state-of-the-art scope has a built-in laser rangefinder, a digital zoom, automatic firing solutions, and can record and send imagery to other operatives.
Operatives wearing the CAT suit can utilize a heads-up display integrated into the full-face helmet to engage targets and present information from the iPRIMAL network. The aiming reticle inside the display is slaved from a digital sight attached to their firearms.
Fig. 9 – Elcan Digital Hunter Scope
Fire Support. For close air support, or precision indirect fire, PRIMAL has a number of unique capabilities. A compact guided mortar is used in PRIMAL Fury. Based off laser-guided mortar round technology, this weapon also takes elements from the Switchblade suicide drone and integrates into the iPRIMAL fire control system. Close Air Support from aircraft is also integrated, whether it is precision munitions from the Pain Train (see Figure 10 below), or the retractable minigun on the Dragonfly tiltrotor.
Fig. 10 – Gunslinger precision munitions pod on a cargo ramp
Non-lethal. PRIMAL occasionally uses non-lethal weapons to disable a target. In PRIMAL Unleashed the XREP Taser shotgun round is used (see Figure 11 below), and in PRIMAL Reckoning Bishop is issued with an experimental tactical flashlight. The flashlight is inspired by the Surefire Defender series and has an ultracapacitor that can unleash its energy instantly. This device will easily dazzle an adversary but can only hold enough charge for one blast.
Fig. 11 – XREP TASER shotgun round
TRANSPORT
Aircraft.
PRIMAL operates a stable of unique aircraft that are based at their secure facilities on the island or in Abu Dhabi. They are all transport aircraft, which is appropriate for the Priority Movements Airlift cover story. Although they appear to be generic airframes each one is heavily modified for special operations missions employing cutting-edge military and aviation technology. Their tail numbers are regularly changed for counter-intelligence purposes.
In selecting the aircraft and their capabilities I’ve balanced the latest technological developments against the realism of trying to integrate extremely complex systems. The reality is some of the capabilities of these PRIMAL aircraft would be too challenging for the small team to develop, install, integrate, and maintain. However for the sake of story telling I’ve taken a few liberties. I’m talking about technologies that include the latest electronic-countermeasures installed in PRIMAL’s Gulfstream business jet, capable of spoofing or jamming enemy radars, or the on-board drones launched from the Pain Train. At the time of writing this compendium the United States Air Force is experimenting with these concepts.
AN-72. Nicknamed ‘Jumper’, PRIMAL’s AN-72 is a versatile infil/exfil platform capable of landing and taking off on short improvised runways. It has upgraded landing gear, a parachute brake, and is equipped for rocket-assisted takeoff. Jumper features in PRIMAL Unleashed where it crash lands in Ukraine and is destroyed.
Fig. 12 – AN-72 ‘Jumper’
Il-76. The Il-76 ‘Pain Train’ is PRIMAL’s dedicated special operations support aircraft. It is similar in concept to the MC-130W ‘Dragon Spear’ which is a tanker/transport converted into a gunship platform. Externally it appears to be a regular transport aircraft, however it contains sophisticated fire support weaponry, surveillance capabilities, and defensive countermeasures. From a discreet hatch or off the rear ramp it can launch guided munitions to provide accurate fire support to operatives on the ground. It is also equipped with disposable drones and a retractable EO/FLIR pod to enhance long-range surveillance capabilities. The Pain Train is capable of supporting parachute operations including emergency resupply. For recovery of personnel where a runway is not available the Pain Train is equipped with the ‘Skyhook’ Fulton recovery system.
Fig. 13 – Il-76 ‘Pain Train’
AW609. The AW609 is a tiltrotor aircraft that combines the vertical takeoff and landing of a helicopter with the range and speed of a fixed-wing aircraft. PRIMAL’s AW609 is nicknamed ‘Dragonfly’ and its only modifications are long-range internal fuel tanks and a retractable .50 cal minigun pod. Future versions of Dragonfly will likely utilize internal weapons bays for 70mm laser-guided rockets such as the DAGR (Direct Attack Guided Rocket). Dragonfly was used in PRIMAL Vengeance, however at the time of that mission, in reality, it was still an experimental aircraft. The real AW609 is due to complete final certification trials in 2015.
Fig. 14 - Agusta Westland 609 prototype tiltrotor
G650. ‘Sleek’ is PRIMAL’s G650 business jet. One of the most advanced executive jets available; PRIMAL has modified her with extended range fuel tanks, terrain following radar, a system for delivering precision delivery pods or parachutists, and an advanced defensive electronic countermeasures suite. The countermeasures suite is an Israeli-developed package that is capable of spoofing enemy radar and jamming rad
ar guided missiles.
Fig. 15 – G650 ‘Sleek’
Other transport.
Although PRIMAL’s cover story is based on an air transport company they also use other forms of transport. In PRIMAL Origin they charter a luxury motor-yacht to cruise to Cyprus and assassinate a Russian Mafia boss in his seaside resort. That vessel was unique in that it had no modifications and was leased. In PRIMAL Vengeance they use a Land Rover four-wheel drive known as a Bowler. Effectively a Land Rover 110 hotted-up to rally-spec, it also had a remote driving and self-destruct system. A MI-17 transport helicopter was leased in PRIMAL Fury and used in a rescue operation in Hungary. PRIMAL’s arms dealer Yuri ensured the chopper was armed to the teeth making it the perfect infiltration platform for the CAT quick reaction force.
EQUIPMENT
PRIMAL operatives are issued with a range of customized equipment to give them an edge over adversaries. Usually procured and modified by Mitch, he is given a near-unlimited budget to ensure operatives have the very latest technology. I’ll briefly cover some of PRIMAL’s signature equipment. You can find more details on equipment, weapons, and vehicles in the PRIMAL intel database here.
PRIMAL Starter Box Set (PRIMAL Series) Page 41