Iraq: American troops face new rocket-propelled bombs

China View ^ | July 10, 2008

[2ndDivisionVet]

Suspected Shiite militiamen have begun using powerful rocket-propelled bombs to attack U.S. military outposts in recent months, broadening the array of weapons used against American troops.

U.S. military officials call the devices Improvised Rocket Assisted Munitions, or IRAMs. They are propane tanks packed with hundreds of pounds of explosives and powered by 107mm rockets. They are often fired by remote control from the backs of trucks, sometimes in close succession.

Rocket-propelled bombs have killed at least 21 people, including at least three U.S. soldiers, this year.

The latest reported rocket-propelled bomb attack occurred Tuesday at Joint Security Station Ur, a base in northeastern Baghdad shared by U.S. and Iraqi soldiers. One U.S. soldier and an interpreter were wounded in the attack.

U.S. military officials say IRAM attacks, unlike roadside bombings and conventional mortar or rocket attacks, have the potential to kill scores of soldiers at once. IRAMs are fired at close range, unlike most rockets, and create much larger explosions. Most such attacks have occurred in the capital, Baghdad.

The use of the rocket-propelled bombs reflects militiamen's ability to use commonly available materials and relatively low-tech weaponry to circumvent security measures that have cost the U.S. military billions of dollars.

To combat roadside bombs, known as improvised explosive devices or IEDs, U.S. and Iraqi troops have set up scores of checkpoints throughout the capital, increased patrols and purchased hundreds of armored vehicles that can resist such attacks.

Militia members and insurgents have at times increased the sophistication of their weapons, but the rocket-propelled bombs are makeshift devices that also have been used in recent years by insurgents in Colombia. Propane tanks are ubiquitous in Iraq, where the fuel is widely used for cooking, making it hard for security forces to stop production of the bombs.

To counter the threat posed by rocket-propelled bombs, soldiers have stepped up patrols around outposts, fortified their buildings and offered tens of thousands of dollars for information about networks that use the weapon.

Most attacks have been carried out during the day and some have been videotaped and aired on the satellite television station operated by Hezbollah, a Lebanese militia and political movement. U.S. military officials said they have found Iranian-made 107mm rockets at some of the blast sites, which they said suggests the weapons — or parts — may have come from Iran.

[2ndDivisionVet]

Tell me again why we're not bombing Iran right now...

[2harddrive]

We should be GLAD the enemy is using home-made weapons, rather than sophisticated ones.

[SolidWood]

This fall.

[SolidWood]

home-made weapons

More like Iranian and Chinese made weapons.

[EagleUSA]

October surprise??? BBBOOOOOMMMMM !!!

[Travis McGee]

A new twist?

[DJ Elliott]

Hillbilly mortars.

That is an indicator that the heavy mortars and rockets are not getting thru anymore and the stockpiles are out...

Why else would they be jurry-riging IRA style mortars...

[DJ Elliott]

PS Old story. We wrote about them in the LWJ a month ago. The press is just catching on. At least the WaPo gave LWJ credit for their rip-off of our story...

[DJ Elliott]

http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2008/06/mahdi_army_uses_flyi.php

From 5 June...

The MSM is so out of date...

(Full disclosure: I helped write that article.)

[archy]

October surprise??? BBBOOOOOMMMMM !!!

In 2008, Yom Kippur is on Thursday, the 9th of October. You might want to mark that day on your calender. For the Moslems, Quds Day in 2008 is on Friday, the 26th of September.

Expect any time between those two waypoints to be a real period to be paying attention.

[navyguy]

Just another reason to kill al-Sadr, Nasrallah and every single member of the Shiite militia in Iraq and every single member of Hezbollah.

We can start with Tehran.

[archy]

Hillbilly mortars. ... Why else would they be jurry-riging IRA style mortars...

Not quite. They're hotrodding the existing warheads of 107s but are not firing the things from extended ranges as MLRS volley rockets, but are using them for close-up work in urban areas.

The bombs, dubbed improvised rocket-assisted munitions (IRAMs), have left at least 21 people dead, including three U.S. troops, this year, the Post said.

"IRAM attacks could be very tragic against us," said Col. William Hickman, the commander of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 101st Airborne Division, who is working in Baghdad. "We take them very seriously."

I am reminded of something earlier and similar, that pushed a 6-inch shell out to 7500 yards.

[Travis McGee]

When archy mentions dates, smart people mark their calenders.

[fishergirl]

Hmmm, interesting.

[tet68]

If these are 107 rocket bodies pushing propane cylinders, then this would be perhaps better called an IRAFAM Improvised Rocket Assisted Fuel Air Munition.

[tet68]

U.S. military officials said they have found Iranian-made 107mm rockets at some of the blast sites, which they said suggests the weapons — or parts — may have come from Iran.

I feel we should send them back.......with interest.
Time to interdict the Amadinejad Trail.

[tet68]

Nebelwerfers came in two sizes and could be fired direct from their shipping containers in addition to being fired from the wheeled launcher, an awesome weapon.

These sound more like they are propelling 25/50lb propane bottles a short distance in ambush or encounter situations
a sort of projected Fougasse, or is it more like the “toffee apple” trench mortar of ww I.?

[Squantos]

Old school IRA stuff that was used too try and take out Maggie in England is where I first encountered em.........they would load a van with a dozen of em and parked it a few blocks from 10 downing and not sure why or how but it either fizzled or was discovered.

Propane 30 pounders in home made mortar tubes inside a van with a cloth top........you remember that don’t ya ??

The description I am getting from after action reports lead me too think these in Iraq were designed along these same lines.

[atomic conspiracy]

This is the same kind of field-modified rocket weapon that guerrillas, terrorists, and other desperate types have been throwing together for at least a hundred years.

Imagine the media response if the insurgents were reduced to using flintlock muskets:

Deadly New Improvised Weapon Threatens US Troops

US efforts to choke off the flow of imported munitions to Iraqi insurgents may have backfired. Resistance groups are reported to have replaced their aging AK-47s with ingenious new home-made weapons that can be manufactured by traditional village craftsmen using commonly available materials. The weapons, fabricated from bar stock, old transmission parts, and broken furniture, even use locally manufactured ammunition, emphasizing the fierce independence of the Iraqi fighters.

The improvised firearm's projectile is cast from old wheel weights and fishing sinkers. It is said to be up to ten times as heavy as the bullets fired by the high-tech American M-16, first adopted during the disastrous war in Vietnam.

"Yeah, if one of them suckers hit you, you would probably be dead," admitted Specialist Dimbert Remf, a data entry clerk with MNF-Baghdad's local contracting office.

For propellant, the new insurgent weapons replace expensive imported powder with a simple mixture of widely available natural and organic materials, including ordinary charcoal. The deadly charge is ignited by a simple and environmentally sound combination of flint and steel of the same kind used by indigenous peoples for centuries. The propellant has the added advantage of concealing the user in a dense cloud of whitish smoke when fired. The new weapons are reportedly accurate enough to hit American M-1 tanks at ranges up to 50 meters.