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From: swilliam@oasys.dt.navy.mil (Steve Williams)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: external gadgetry on tanks
Message-ID: <1991Apr17.055807.14210@amd.com>
Date: 16 Apr 91 13:51:47 GMT
References: <1991Apr12.055056.13916@amd.com> <1991Apr13.015308.23824@amd.com>
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From: swilliam@oasys.dt.navy.mil (Steve Williams)


>smoke grenades.  When tanks don't have natural obstacles to hide behind,
>one attractive option is laying down a smokescreen as an artificial one.

Almost correct.  The tanks are camouflaged painted to blend with the
natural surroundings, or they can be covered with nets, branches, etc.

Laying smokescreen can also draw the enemy's attention.  It depends 
on how you use the smoke screen.

Actually, the smoke screen is to prevent the enemy from making visual 
contact with the tanks.  You know the old saying, "If you can't see 
it, you can't hit it."  The old saying applies here.

>Space within a tank is very limited, so anything reasonably robust gets
>to ride outside.  Besides, every little bit of junk on the outside is
>one more thing that can get in the way of an incoming shell.

No one wants to open the hatch to fire a smokescreen cartridge in the
middle of a gun battle.  Also, the "tubes" projecting through the turret 
shell makes that portion of turret vulnerable to a direct hit on that
spot (absence of thick armor exactly where the tube is).  Hence, the 
tubes are mounted outside on the turret as to preserve the turret's
integrity.

Steve Williams