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From: cga66@ihlpy.att.com (Patrick V Kauffold)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Are there "smart" minefields?
Message-ID: <1991Mar15.040303.10031@cbnews.att.com>
Date: 15 Mar 91 04:03:03 GMT
References: <1991Mar12.231453.29226@cbnews.att.com>
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From: cga66@ihlpy.att.com (Patrick V Kauffold)
> From: portal!cup.portal.com!ts@uunet.UU.NET
> Does anyone make or use "smart" mines?  For example, suppose you
> put a CPU and some simple communication system, such as a very low
> power radio, in each mine.  Each mine would communicate with its
> neighbors.
> 
> Such a minefield could do rather nasty things, such as wait for
> a groups of soldiers or equipment to get deep into the minefield
> before exploding.

Proper minefields may include command-detonated mines as well as 
contact-detonated mines.  Minefields are generally laid out to
slow an advance and/or channel the attackers into a killing ground.

Major rule of minefileds: they have to be kept under observation,
and they have to be maintained.  The Iraqis did neither of these with
their mine fields in Kuwait; the Marines just went in at night and
took out many at their liesure (relatively speaking).  Plus many 
mine fields were apparently laid out in a very bad manner.

They were supposed to have good engineers.  Guess not.