Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!att!cbnews!military From: ab3o+@andrew.cmu.edu (Allan Bourdius) Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Re: Tanks in the Persian Gulf Crisis--The M1 Abrams Message-ID: <1990Sep24.001756.24033@cbnews.att.com> Date: 24 Sep 90 00:17:56 GMT Sender: military-request@att.att.com Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories Lines: 22 Approved: military@att.att.com From: Allan Bourdius I have a friend who's a TC with the 1st Bde, 3rd ArmDiv in Frankfurt and he's told me that the M1A1 can push 80+ road and 50+ cross-country without the governor (unofficially). The M1A1's armor is supposedly Chobham modified with an extra layer of depleted uranium added. I think they also probably have lots of Kevlar on them too. All USMC and USA tracked and wheeled armored vehicles have provisions for mounting reactive armor. RA was an American idea anyway. Just remember that RA is only effective against shaped charges, HESH and mabye HEAT rounds. Kinetic energy rounds (APDS and APFSDS) would go through RA like, to quote James Bond, "a blowtorch through butter." The depleted uranium was probably added to the M1A1 for protection against KE rounds. I've heard that the M1A1's armor has been tested against every known antitank weapon and the armor has yet to be breached with less than three rounds in the exact same place. MIDN 3/C Bourdius CMUNROTCU