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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: LindyBill who wrote (19984)	12/15/2003 8:42:52 AM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793735

ARMORED WARFARE: The World's Largest Shotgun December 15, 2003: One reason M-1 tanks are still frequently used for combat operations in Iraq is because they have a new shotgun type shell for use against hostile infantry. The XM1028 shell holds 1100 10mm tungsten balls that are propelled out of the gun barrel and begin to disperse. The tungsten projectiles are lethal at up to 700 meters. The official, "… requirement is to defeat equal to or greater than 50% of a 10 man squad with 1 shot and equal to or greater than 50% of a 30 man platoon with 2 shots." Production of the shell began last year, with up to 30,000 shells (costing over $3,000 each) to be produced. Some 2,000 shells have been produced so far, with another 3,000 being built in 2004 and 5,000 in the year after that. In Iraq, the M-1 tank rolls down the road with an XM1028 round loaded and the gunner looking through his sight for potential targets. If attackers do pop up, a hail of 10mm projectiles can be fired at them in seconds. At night, the XM1028 is even more lethal, for many hostile Iraqis still don't realize that the thermal sight on the M-1 makes people clearly visible at night to the gunner, especially if they are carrying AK-47s or RPG launchers. The Iraqis still tend to bunch up, which allows one XM1028 round to wipe out entire teams of hostile fighters. The M-1 using the XM1028 shell is the world's largest shotgun. December 11, 2003: For over a decade, the U.S. Army has resisted adopting the Swedish Carl Gustav portable recoilless rifle. But since watching US Army Special Forces use this weapon in Afghanistan and Iraq, they are reconsidering. This weapon has been around for over two decades, is used by several dozen countries. The Carl Gustav was adopted by SOCOM (first for the Ranger Regiment) in 1990. The Carl Gustav is basically a lightweight (20 pounds) recoilless rifle. The barrel is rifled and good for about a hundred rounds. Range is 500-700 meters (depending on type of round fired.) The 84mm projectiles weigh about four pounds each and come in several different types (anti-armor, combined anti-armor/high explosive, illumination and smoke.) The anti-armor round is very useful in urban areas and against bunkers. The army has since adopted the single shot version of the Carl Gustav (as the AT4), but the Special Forces showed that the Carl Gustav is better because you get more shots for less weight (the AT4 weighs about 15 pounds each). It's easier to carry one Carl Gustav, at about 20 pounds, and a bunch of rocket propelled shells at about five pounds (with packaging) each. The army is discussing the Carl Gustav's with Special Forces officers and users and may adopt it for army-wide use. strategypage.com