Two die as US Abrams tank blown up

[acmavm]

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/29/1067233252382.html?from=storyrhs

October 30, 2003

<snip>

Two United States soldiers were killed when their Abrams battle tank was attacked, and seven Ukrainian troops were wounded in the first ambush of a multinational unit in the Polish sector south of Baghdad, coalition officials said yesterday.

The tank was disabled when it was struck by a land mine or roadside bomb during a patrol near Balad, 70 kilometres north of Baghdad on Tuesday night, said Major Josslyn Aberle, a spokeswoman for the 4th Infantry Division.

A third crewman was evacuated to a US hospital in Germany, she said.

It was believed to be the first M1 Abrams main battle tank destroyed since the end of major combat on May 1. During the war, several of the 68-tonne vehicles - the mainstay of the US Army's armoured forces - were disabled in combat.

**************************************************************
It's already tomorrow over there. Another day, another couple dead soldiers.

[Fixated]

1. .....

Damn, now the Ukranians might bail out.

[bluestateguy]

2. It's Clinton's fault!!!

The tank wouldn't have blown up if he had spent a few hundred billion more on weapons!

[kalian]

3. Impressive....

The resistance fighters are really determined...
I think its time that we get our troops out....like right the fuck
now!

[david_vincent]

4. Someone on an earlier thread today

posted a link to the Army Times site. If you look for a story on a "mystery missile" or something like that, you'll find an amazing story about a tank that was disabled in August by an unknown munition. The Army Times has even put up a very cool slide show, in which you can follow through photographs the path that the mystery round took through the tank's armor, across the interior of the tank (injuring the gunner and disabling critical systems), and 2 inches deep into the opposite side. The accompanying story explains why it appears that no known type of munition could have been responsible.

[BrotherBuzz]

6. Hell of a magic bullet

here are the the links:

slide show link
article

[The_Casual_Observer]

7. Sounds like a fine little lie

This tank is the overpriced piece of shit that can be stoped by putting a few 55 gallon drums or and old wrecked car in it's path.

I wouldn't believe ANY of their Bullshit about this, cause you know what? it happened, they blew one up today, and I guarantee that they didn't have a "mystery missile", they simply found out by trial & error ( what is it now? 30 attacks a day ?) where the weak spots are.

[BrotherBuzz]

8. The merits of the Abrams tank aren't in dispute

The article he referenced was an incident that happened back in August when an Abrams tank was disabled but nobody was killed. There really was a 'magic bullet' (read unknown RPG load) that has the military officals scratching their heads, and the boys in the field nervous.

www.armytimes.com/story.php?f=1-292236-2336437.php

<snip>
In the sort of excited language seldom included in official Army documents, he said, ÒThe unit is very anxious to have this ÔSOMETHINGÕ identified. It seems clear that a penetrator of a yellow molten metal is what caused the damage, but what weapon fires such a round and precisely what sort of round is it? The bad guys are using something unknown and the guys facing it want very much to know what it is and how they can defend themselves.Ó

Whatever penetrated the tank created enough heat inside the hull to activate the vehicleÕs Halon firefighting gear, which probably prevented more serious injuries to the crew.

An RPG-7 can penetrate about 12 inches of steel Ñ a thickness far greater than the armor that was penetrated on the tank in Baghdad. But the limited spalling evident in the photos accompanying the incident report all but rules out the RPG-7 as the culprit, experts say.

Limited spalling is a telltale characteristic of Western-manufactured weapons designed to defeat armor with a cohesive jet stream of molten metal. In contrast, RPG-7s typically produce a fragmented jet spray.

<more>

[loudnclear]

5. Are these two new fatalities or the same as reported earlier today?

Please explain. Is the count 317 or 319?

[VolcanoJen]

9. Dupe... locking

After reading the article, it's clear that this thread refers to the attack which took place Tuesday night.

Please continue discussion in the original, earliest LBN thread on this topic, which can be found here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=189178&mesg_id=189178

Thanks!
VolcanoJen
DU Moderator