Posted on 12/13/2008 2:58:30 PM PST by neverdem
The remote control turret changed the battlefield more than you might think. It all began three years ago, when the U.S. Army realized that new remote control gun turret designs actually worked, and suddenly they could not get enough of them. The army ordered over 9,000 CROWS (common remotely operated weapon stations), but for a while could only get 15 a month. By the end of 2006, there were about a thousand CROWS in service by the end of the year.
The main issue was that the enemy was no longer able to knock out the turret gunner, early in a firefight, and take away a lot of the vehicles firepower. Because of that, once the enemy opens fire, they are in trouble. The remote turret tends to begin delivering accurate fire right away, and is much more immune to enemy fire than a human gunner. If the vehicle is a Stryker, the enemy will soon find themselves dealing with half a dozen or so heavily armed infantry, who get out of the vehicle and come at the ambushers. Iraqis don't like that. They also don't like how some of the CROWS turret equipped vehicles will come after them. All those accurately aimed bullets coming their way, and no enemy soldiers in sight, is demoralizing.
The idea for CROWS has been around for nearly half a century. Years of tinkering, and better technology, eventually made the remote control gun turret effective and dependable. CROWS is a real lifesaver, not to mention anxiety reducer, for troops who drive through bandit country a lot, and have a turret mounted gun (usually in a hummer). The guy manning the turret mounted machine-gun is a target up there, and too often, the bad guys get you. Not with CROWS. The gunner is inside...
(Excerpt) Read more at strategypage.com ...
A CROWS with one of those mounted to it would have to have a large trailer full of ammo being towed behind the HUMV and a system for feeding the ammo from the trailer.
I prefer shooters on console.
I’m thinking one of those radar operated missile zappers like they have on the ships. And it would be awesome if you could keep reloading it from below.
Word of advice:
If you ever face one of these manned by bad guys in your home town, aim your deer rifle for those shiny lenses. One hit and they are out of commission. Same as the armored windows of APCs. Slows the drivers down.
Meanwhile, inside vehicles like the Stryker, the troops do feel like they are in another world. The Stryker is air conditioned, well equipped with electronics (including a sound system you can plug an iPod into) and a lot nicer than the nastiness outside.
Good God - the future is now...
Meanwhile, inside vehicles like the Stryker, the troops do feel like they are in another world. The Stryker is air conditioned, well equipped with electronics (including a sound system you can plug an iPod into) and a lot nicer than the nastiness outside.
Good God - the future is now...
Here’s the last paragraph from your link, the “bottom line.”
“Where the Soldiers in the first rotation in Iraq were perhaps unprepared for dealing with deadly roadside bombs and ambushes by plainclothes civilians, the Soldiers who took over were able to prepare with the benefit of lessons learned by their comrades in Iraq. Readying for its yearlong tour in Iraq, in early 2004 the 984th Military Police Company spent more time than usual familiarizing itself with its weapons, vehicles and tactics. Armed with the latest addition to the MP’s arsenal of vehicles, the M1117 Guardian Armored Security Vehicle, each team in the 984th carries more firepower than an entire infantry squad. The 984th was the first MP company on Fort Carson to get the new ASVs, each armed with an MK-19 grenade launcher, a .50-caliber machine gun and a squad automatic weapon. The Guardian is designed to be able to take a direct hit from an RPG and keep its crew alive. Whether the vehicle will make it through the hit is another story. In Iraq, one was hit from behind by an RPG and it pretty much took out the entire engine casing, but there were no deaths, no injuries. With better preparation than their predecessors and a dozen new ASVs, the 984th was better outfitted to take over the task of keeping the peace in Iraq than their compatriot MPs who were already there.”
So far, it seems like th eonly complaint about the ASV is that there are not enough of them.
They are going to make a stretched ASV with a small troop capacity. It’s hard to keep a vehicle under about 15 tons, provide speed, agility, armor, and a troop capacity. It’s like one of those old, “you can choose only 3” deals.
Meanwhile, that glass eyeball is seeing you in super zoom, hi-def, full color and thermal IR.
You’d better shoot it quick, before that Ma Deuce is on you!
Yep, there are still the tracers, and “walking” your rounds into the target. That will always work.
“If all it takes is one bullet in the right place to disable it, how is that any different than killing the gunner?”
Um, because it’s not a human being with parents and maybe a family of its own?! Wow.
Above the fold, front page of major islamic iran newspaper called Kayhan with headings translated. Amusing window into islamic MSM.
The Mullahs have corrupted the language to a degree where it is now partly Arabic “Mullah speak” where parts of it become unintelligible to normal Persian language speakers, who have not lived inside the country for the last 20-years. Including educated ones who studied Arabic words that were common in Farsi previously.
One of the headings had one of these that could not be found in a Farsi dictionary.
Also scroll down the next few articles below the link shown below:
http://noiri.blogspot.com/2008/12/farsi-kayhan-october-2008.html
“Good grief, of course I don’t equate that to a dead soldier. Only officers in the Pentagon do stuff like that.”
OK, I recant my last post to you.
“Regardless if whether the bullet takes out a live gunner, or a CROW system, the weapon system is combat ineffective.”
From what I’ve read, the CROW system is a whole lot harder to “kill” than a gunner. Also, it is clearly a whole lot easier to “bring back to life” for the next mission. That is definitely a combat effectiveness plus.
“Compare that cost to a brand new ASV with an actual armored turret that is a much more flexible vehicle for this type of conflict.”
That would be an interesting comparisson. However, there are also a whole lot of Hummers out there, many already up-armored, so another relevant question is how many can be upgraded with the CROWS for the equivalent cost of an ASV? Anyone know these relative costs?
“I want not only the soldiers to stay alive, but for the US military to remain the best equipped in the world.”
Yup.
That RPG hit they speak of is the EFP hit in that video ya sent which in my experience is worse than a PG7 hit !
But seems if that EFP had hit the crew compartment.....hmmmmmm ?
Good rig reports NTL !
Thanks for posting. GRRRRREAT stuff!
Well, thank you!
and a Zeppi Christmas
The gunner is still alive.
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