Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!att!cbnews!military From: xvm@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Joe Lucas) Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Re: Tanks in the Persian Gulf Crisis--The M1 Abrams Message-ID: <1990Sep24.001726.23910@cbnews.att.com> Date: 24 Sep 90 00:17:26 GMT References: <1990Sep14.042819.1844@cbnews.att.com> <1990Sep18.024642.21045@cbnews.att.com> Sender: military-request@att.att.com Organization: TAS Lines: 50 Approved: military@att.att.com From: xvm@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Joe Lucas) In article <1990Sep18.024642.21045@cbnews.att.com> consp21@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu (Ken Hoover) writes: > >In article <1990Sep14.042819.1844@cbnews.att.com> jfb@ihlpm.att.com (Joseph F Baugher) writes: >>M1 and M1A1 Abrams >> Performance: >> Maximum road range: 300 miles. >> Maximum speed: 45 mi/hr. > > It is noted in Tom Clancy's _Red Storm Rising_ that the governor >limiting the tank to that 45 mph speed is one of the first things >removed by the tank crews when they get assigned to a tank; producing >a new top speed of about 60 mph (!). Can anyone verify this? This is my first posting so if I mess up I'm sorry. Anyways I had the pleasure of talking with an Abrams driver who had been stationed in Germany. He had some very interesting things to say. The first and most interesting was the top speed of the M1. He stated that the top speed was 85 MPH on level ground and the fastest he had been in a tank trap (with all those hills and valleys to really test the suspension) was 65 MPH. It's kind of hard to imagine this 60 ton best moving this fast but I imagine the gas turbine engine puts out a lot of power. The second item was the loudness of the turbine. He told of how in a simulated attack against a Canadian unit the M1's roared through the front lines while the Candians enjoyed their breakfast. Lesson - Evidently the gas turine is very quiet (well at least compared to the other engines that inhabit a battlefield). The Canadians never heard then coming until the M1's were passing through the rear. The third item we discussed was 'What to do when the brakes go out?' His replay? 'Don't hit a chicken.' The United States government has to foot the bill for damaged civilian property while on maneauvers. He said it was better to go through a house (as long as you didn't hurt anyone) than to kill a chicken. If a house gets taken out the Uncle Sam only has to pay to replace the house itself. In the case of the chicken, the original chicken has to be replaced plus the cost of the loss productivity because the eggs it would have laid in its lifetime cannot mature to lay their eggs. The United States ends up paying fo quite a few generations of chickens. Comments and replys are welcome. If I'm wrong on any of these let me know ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Would anyone else be stupid enough to claim these thoughts as their own? A .sig is in the works . . . Another message from xvm@mentor.cc.purdue.edu Joseph Lucas - Computer Science