What does R&S mean in MILITARY

Reconnaissance and Surveillance (R&S) is an activity conducted by military, law enforcement and intelligence agencies in order to collect information about a particular target or area. It involves the gathering of tactical information about an adversary or operational environment for planning purposes.

R&S activities are designed to gather tactical information such as location, composition, movement, strength, dispositions, morale, organization, combat capability and vulnerabilities of hostile forces as well as terrain conditions that may affect operations.

While both activities involve collecting intelligence on targets and areas, R&S focuses more on the “eye-in-the-sky” aspect—utilizing aerial surveillance such as satellites or airplanes—to gain insight into the target's behavior in real-time instead of relying solely on secondhand sources.

Due to the rise of threats from global terrorism and other sources, it has become critical for military forces, law enforcement organizations and intelligence services to be able to quickly gather accurate information on potential targets before engaging them. By conducting effective reconnaissance missions with state-of-the-art surveillance technology, these entities can better monitor their adversaries while having a better understanding of their current situation at any given moment.

During reconnaissance missions there are typically three main methods used including visual observation (e.g., binoculars), electronic sensing (e.g., radar) and photography (e.g., drones). Depending on the situation each method can be utilized individually or together for greater accuracy when collecting data on enemy forces or areas of interest.