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I have been wondering what if any MBT concept we have on the drawing board. I recall seeing a concept MBT with actual hydraulics that lifted the body in order to give it greater visibility. Anyway... Anyone have anything?

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel...

Can we for once skip the misleading military jargon about why the Merkava Tank can be replaced by a future FCS (The U.S. Army’s Future Combat System)? The simple fact is that this is an exact replay of the scheme of Caspar Weinberger which successfully eliminated Israel’s Lavi aircraft. The Lavi was a superb Israeli creation of a needed operation ground support and air superiority fighter aircraft. The Lavi would have cost $17 Million, as opposed to at least twice that for any current fighting jet from any country, inclusive of spare parts. The Lavi was lighter than the F16,...

October 18, 2003: The success of American troops in Iraq, and the demise of the Iraqi army, is threatening the Israeli attempt to continue production, which only began in 2001, of their new Merkava 4 tank. This tank is supposed to enter service in 2004. The Merkava 4 is a 65 ton vehicle, with the engine in front of the turret and a compartment in the rear of the tank that can hold eight troops, or three casualties on stretchers. The tank carries 48 rounds for its 120mm gun, with ten of them in an quick loading carousel. The Merkava...

An IDF Merkava tank accidently turned over near the Israeli-Lebanese border this evening lightly injuring 3 troops, a military source told the Jerusalem Post. Two of the soldiers have been evacuated from the Mt. Dov area to Zeev Hospital in Sfat, while an IDF rescue team is presently attemping to enter the tank and remove a third soldier. The tank was on a routine patrol of the border when the incident occured.

The Command Detonated Mine (CDM) is quickly becoming a staple of Asymetrical Warfare. It has been used with deadly effect in both the First and Second Chechen Wars, as well as in Sri Lanka, Lebanon and the fighting in India's Kargil region. Also known as an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), the standard device is often a 152mm HE artillery shell or it's equivalent with a C-4 wad and detonator connected to a cell-phone, pager or radio initiator. Variations on this theme, to include wire-controlled detonation, are as varied as the conflicts in which they can be found. The Israelis Defense...

Analysis By Arieh O'Sullivan (March 15) - When Palestinian gunmen destroyed the first Merkava Mk III tank a month ago, the IDF rushed into damage control mode. It said the design of the tank actually saved the life of the gunner, as the explosion didn't set off the ammunition nor set the fuel alight as it blew the turret off. It said no tank in the world could have withstood 100 kilos of high explosives detonating at its underbelly. The armor experts found it hard to believe the tank fell into a trap. They called it bad luck. A subsequent...