[GonzoGOP]

I know enough to know what happens when you get an explosion in an ammo magazine. This is a cargo ship, not an armored warship where the ammo is safely down below the water line. An RPG, designed to punch through a tank, is going to go through her hull like a knife through butter. Normally not a problem on a ship that large, but if it hits ammo then you are probably going to loose the ship.

Look at history. Arizona took a hit in a magazine and sank in seconds, Hood took a mag hit and was literally blown into three peaces, and those were heavily armored warships built to a higher structural requirements than a merchantman. Look up the Port Chicago fire to see what happens when an ammo ship explodes, and those were ships carrying only a fraction of the tonnage of volatiles that a modern sea lift ship can carry. There is a reason the Navy used to name their ammo ships after volcanoes.

[GingisK]

Heck one RPG in to the jet fuel or ammo magazine and the ship goes away with a big flash/bang.

I think those chances to bee VERY REMOTE. The RPG would detonate against the hull, spraying hot gas and some metal inside. Of course, the sabot would enter like a bat out of hell. The hot gas would dissipate between the hull and the cargo holds. The sabot is not explosive. Military explosives will not usually detonate unless set off with a primer. Small arms ammo doesn't blow all to hell just because a projectile passes through it.

Military fuels are chosen and compounded in order to be immune to kenetic impact.

[Francis McClobber]

1. Generally, the holds that ammunition are stored in are in the center of the ship either at, or below the waterline. Penetrating all the ballast tanks and voids from the ship’s skin would be difficult.

2. Modern ships learned from disasters. Holds where ammunition is stored have vents that allow the pressure concussion to escape, saving the integrity of the ship’s hull.

3. Comparing the explosive power of an RPG to a torpedo or bomb is kind of silly. I don’t think an RPG would have done the same damage to the Arizona as the torpedos did.