Path: utzoo!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!linac,att!cbnews!cbnews!military
From: stevenp@decwrl.pa.dec.com (Steven Philipson)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Patriots - dangerous to use?
Message-ID: <1991Mar18.134804.19216@cbnews.att.com>
Date: 18 Mar 91 13:48:04 GMT
References: <1991Feb19.033653.19495@cbnews.att.com> <1991Feb18.061210.14241@cbnews.att.com>
Sender: military@cbnews.att.com (william.b.thacker)
Organization: DEC Palo Alto
Lines: 38
Approved: military@att.att.com



From: stevenp@decwrl.pa.dec.com (Steven Philipson)
In article <1991Feb19.033653.19495@cbnews.att.com>, rubin@cis.ohio-state.edu
    (daniel j rubin) writes;

> [...] When 
> the patriot gets to this point it's nose cone releases a lot of cubes that 
> eventually run into the incomming missle causing it to break up and its 
> warhead to explode in the air.  I don't see how a patriot can do that much 
> damage since it just releases hi speed cubes to intercept the
incomming missle
> and since it is programmed to release them at a cretain point in the air
> it does not matter if the what happens to the incomming missle if two
patriots
> are launched because they both have a set task anyways.

   "Releasing cubes" is a time-honored method of inflicting damage.  Hand-
grenades release cubes in similar fashion, just as rifles can be said to
release little balls.  In the case of a missile, this is known as a
"fragmentation warhead".  The timing of the detonation of the warhead is
intended to maximize the probability of fragment impact on the incoming
missile.  It is possible for the SCUD's warhead to be detonated or for its
detonating mechanism to be disabled.  The SCUD can also be destabilized,
possibly resulting in an inflight breakup and subsequent failure to
detonate.  In some cases, the intercepted SCUD warhead detonates anyway.
Clearly the Patriot does not constitute a perfect defense.

  Patriots are subject to failure as are any other piece of machinery.  
Multiple Patriot launches are thus employed to increase the probability
of an effective intercept.  Aviation Week reported that sometimes the
second missile just exploded against the debris from the first missile.
On other occasions, the first missile was not successful, and the second
was needed to complete the intercept.

						   Steve
					(the certified flying fanatic)
					    stevenp@decwrl.dec.com