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From: STOSC::TCOMEAU@SCIVAX.STSCI.EDU (Tom Comeau @ Space Telescope Science Institute)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: TOW performance in Desert Shield
Message-ID: <1991Jan16.014205.10919@cbnews.att.com>
Date: 16 Jan 91 01:42:05 GMT
Sender: military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker)
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lines: 56
Approved: military@att.att.com



From:    "STOSC::TCOMEAU"@SCIVAX.STSCI.EDU (Tom Comeau @ Space Telescope Science Institute)
The ABC News Special "A Line in the Sand" contained some interesting
footage of several units and systems likely to be employed in the next
few days.

The servicepeople said many things that encouraged me.  They seem sober,
yet determined.  One Air Force pilot in particular seemed very aware of
his inexperience, but confident in his training and equipment.

One segment on the Infantry units was very disturbing, however.  The
segment centered on footage of TOW missiles being fired against training
targets in the desert.  While the first few shots were of successful
hits, the segment went on to discuss, and demonstrate rather
dramatically, the reportedly high failure rate of the TOW system.

In three shots by one TOW crew on a HMMMWV the results were as follows:

  1) TOW failed to aquire the target, and flew over it, continuing until
     running out of propellant.
  2) TOW motor failed to ignite, leaving the crew immobile and exposed
     while an EOD team disposed of the weapon.
  3) TOW fired, tracked, and destroyed the target.

The NCO in command of the unit indicated one in three hits was not
unusual, and was obviously upset.  The infantryman who was actually
operating the weapon was angry and clearly shaken after the "hang fire"
on the second shot.  He seemed to realized that, having missed with the
first round and failed to launch the second round, he and all his team
were very likely dead.

Poor performance of weapons systems is nothing new.  During WWII
torpedo failures were legendary among submariners.  The TOW is widely
used by Army and Marine ground forces, and by Marine attack helicopters.
The first failure may be attributable to desert conditions (high heat,
bright sun, difficult to discriminate the target from the background)
which is understandable.  (But of little consolation to the crew.)  The
second failure seems clearly either a quality control or maintenance
failure.  If these numbers are typical of TOW performance, we will
likely find we have been badly served by the builders fo what is touted
as a reliable, highly effective anti-armor weapon.

TOW is built by:

Hughes Aircraft Company, Missile Systems Group, Canoga Park, CA 91304
 Prime Contractor
Emerson Electric Co., Electronics and Space Division, 8100 Florrisant Ave,
 St. Louis, Missouri 63136.  
 Launcher, missile guidance set, optical sight, traversing unit
Kollsman, Military Systems Group. 
 AN/UAS-12C night vision/thermal imaging system
Texas Instruments Inc., PO Box 660246, Dallas, TX 75266
 Infantry Ground Laucher TOW 2 retrofit kits, including digital missile
 guidance set and the AN/TAS-4A night sight.
 (Source for contractor: Jane's Weapons Systems, 1987-88)