Posted on 03/02/2002 1:41:41 PM PST by codebreaker
LOL!
After it goes as far as it can in the cave it detonates-sucking all oxygen out of the cave.
This is what an account in the Jane's Land Forces has to say:
"Russia is currently the world leader in thermobaric weapons, and has already used them in action, for example to clearing Mujahideen from caves in Afghanistan and more recently Chechen guerrillas from buildings in Grozny. There were international protests over their use since a large number of civilians were affected in these instances.
"The Russian RPG – 7 (Note: this also is a weapon used by the LTTE) thermobaric warhead, fired from a manportable rocket-launcher, is said to produce effects comparable to the detonation of 2 kg of TNT, while the effects of the Russian RPO-A Shmel rocket-propelled incendiary / blast projectile are reportedly similar to those produced by a 122 mm howitzer projectile. (Note: 122 mm howitzers are used both by the Army and the Tiger guerrillas).
Here is something I found on the subject: (Note LTTE = "Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam," the Sri Lankan terrorists):
This is what an account in the Jane's Land Forces has to say:
"Russia is currently the world leader in thermobaric weapons, and has already used them in action, for example to clearing Mujahideen from caves in Afghanistan and more recently Chechen guerrillas from buildings in Grozny. There were international protests over their use since a large number of civilians were affected in these instances.
"The Russian RPG – 7 (Note: this also is a weapon used by the LTTE) thermobaric warhead, fired from a manportable rocket-launcher, is said to produce effects comparable to the detonation of 2 kg of TNT, while the effects of the Russian RPO-A Shmel rocket-propelled incendiary / blast projectile are reportedly similar to those produced by a 122 mm howitzer projectile. (Note: 122 mm howitzers are used both by the Army and the Tiger guerrillas).
With your permission, I'm going to put this in my "Man, I wish I'D have thought to post that!" file.
US Warplanes Drop Pressure Bombs in Afghan Battle
March 02, 2002 04:53 PM ETWASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. warplanes on Saturday dropped two extremely accurate, 2,000-pound "thermobaric" bombs into caves in eastern Afghanistan where al Qaeda and Taliban fighters were believed to be hiding, U.S. defense officials said.
The recently developed American bombs are filled with a special explosive mixture that creates a high-pressure blast, driving all of the air out of a cave and potentially suffocating those inside.
The defense officials, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters that two of the bombs were used in support of a major attack by Afghan forces and both U.S. and other coalition troops against regrouping al Qaeda and Taliban south of Gardez in eastern Afghanistan.
Only a very few of the bombs, which use a mixture of fuel in their explosive and recently have been equipped with laser designators to allow them to penetrate cave openings, have been used in the war. The bombs create major air pressure while causing little physical damage.
Projectiles for bombs, missles, and artillery are divided into many different types according to use.
If you want to take out a building, bridge, radar site, etc, you would use a high explosive projectile designed to inflict maximum physical damage.
If the job calls for taking out troop posistions, projectiles packed with thousands of 1/2" dia. steel shot and equipped with a altimeter switch,(Causes it to explode 20 feet of the ground) would be a good choice.
When trying to attack a fortified posistion deep in a cave, conventional high explosive bombs are really of no use. The Thermobaric bomb probably is somekind of fuel/air, with the intent of removing oxygen(as you stated earlier). It would have to be a laser guided to get it in the small openings of the caves.
However, I still feel nothing short of a cave search, which will be bloody, will bring the Alqueda out.
The BLU-114B was successfully tested at the Nevada Test Site on 14 December 2001, when it was dropped from an F-15E attack aircraft. During the test a laser-guided bomb was "skipped" into a tunnel and exploded with a delayed fuze, which produced a significant growth in overpressure and temperature in the tunnel.
Dem Freepers are fast, ain't they?
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