SALUTE report

SALUTE is the NATO standard format for reporting an observation of the enemy. Six fields, always in the same order. The first report every soldier must be able to transmit under stress, at night, on zero sleep.

When to transmit

Whenever you sight something command must know: enemy patrol, firing position, vehicle, drone, infiltration, anomalous activity. SALUTE is a snapshot: what, where, when.

S · A · L · U · T · E

—	Field	Content
S	Size	Estimated personnel or vehicle count. If uncertain, give a range ("six to eight") and flag the uncertainty.
A	Activity	What they are doing. Movement, digging, observation, fire, halt. Verb + direction.
L	Location	MGRS 6 or 8 digits. Never vague descriptions ("near the pole"). If only relative reference exists, declare it.
U	Unit	Flags, patches, vehicles, distinctive kit. If unknown, declare UNKNOWN.
T	Time	DTG (Date-Time Group) in Zulu if possible. e.g. 121430ZJUN26.
E	Equipment	Weapons, optics, comms, vehicles, drones. Only what was observed — no inference.

Realistic example

RADIO

ZULU SIX, this is ALPHA TWO. SALUTE follows, over.

SIZE: six personnel.

ACTIVITY: digging-in along treeline, moving north-east.

LOCATION: grid three-seven-uniform charlie-bravo eight-two-fife seven-zero-three.

UNIT: unknown, mixed camouflage, no visible insignia.

TIME: one-two-one-fower-three-zero Zulu June.

EQUIPMENT: two AK-platform, one PKM, one quadcopter overhead.

How copy, over.

Common mistakes

Reporting inference instead of observation ("it was a Wagner patrol" without proof)
Skipping unknown fields instead of declaring UNKNOWN
Local time instead of Zulu
4-digit grid where 6/8 is needed
Transmitting SALUTE while still under observation — cover first, then report

Lessons learned

The Ukrainian SALUTE has a de facto seventh field: presence/absence of drones. Append "DRONES: yes/no, type if known". An observed patrol with no friendly drone overhead often means an enemy one is incoming — the SALUTE must include this or it is incomplete for 2024–2026 warfare.