Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!att!cbnews!military
From: chamber@ee.udel.edu (Sam Chamberlain)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: How to assault a tanker
Message-ID: <1990Sep13.012827.17691@cbnews.att.com>
Date: 13 Sep 90 01:28:27 GMT
References: <1990Sep6.154605.25887@cbnews.att.com> <1990Sep10.053838.5433@cbnews.att.com> <1990Sep12.014913.29077@cbnews.att.com>
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From: Sam Chamberlain <chamber@ee.udel.edu>

>From: eos!woody@eos.arc.nasa.gov (Wayne Wood)
...
>are you seriously suggesting dropping a SEAL team on a moving tanker???
>
>for a stationary target this might (ha-ha) be feasible... but a moving 
>tanker?  this is ludicrous.
>
>critical assumptions:
>
>	1] how many jumpers land on the target?  enough to secure it?
>	2] weather conditions... must be *PERFECT*
>	3] target acquisition must be *PERFECT*
>
>i don't think it is feasible...

Actually, the question of how to assault a tanker is an old one.  In 1978 I
had a discussion with a friend in the special forces who was a member of the
precursor to the Delta Team. They were trying to land on RB-15 rubber boats,
at night, after a 7,000+ ft HALO jump. Apparently, they were successful.
Modern, high-performance chutes have quite remarkable capabilities.

Sam Chamberlain