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From: fcrary@lightning.Berkeley.EDU (Frank Crary)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Tank surface to air, anti missile capabilities
Message-ID: <1991May9.064003.12643@amd.com>
Date: 8 May 91 01:33:26 GMT
References: <1991May7.062305.12334@amd.com>
Sender: military@amd.com
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From: fcrary@lightning.Berkeley.EDU (Frank Crary)


kevin@ccs.QueensU.CA (Kevin Broekhoven) writes:
>1. Do modern tanks (and specifically the M1) have any surface-to-air
>capability?  Does the main gun have an anti-helicopter capability?

No, modern tanks (at least not any US or Soviet ones) do NOT have 
any anti-air capability. While they can use their main gun and/or
machine gun against a helocopter, this has NEVER been done in combat
(e.g. against an armored attack helocopter). And how effective these
weapons would be is doubtfull.

>2. Do they have any anti-missile systems?  Or do they just get a
>warning that there's an "incoming"

Main Battle Tanks, an also all other ground vehicles I can think of (barring
SAM launchers) have NO anti-missile systems. They also do NOT get a
"warning that there's an 'incoming'" unless they SEE the missile in
flight. The good news is that most of these missiles are wire-guided:
That is, the firer must guide the missile, by hand, untill it hits the
tank. If he is killed, or even shot at, the missile will miss. The bad
news is that most missiles have a longer range than the tank's guns...

>3. Why are the machine guns externally mounted, and manually operated?  

The problem with a machine gun protruding out of the tank is armor: To
mount a gun like that would require a opening in the hull. This is, at \
least, a weak point in the tank's armor. At worst, it would allow in
shrapnel from near misses, and thereby kill the crew. There is very little
use for the commander's machine gun. (Poor anti-air capability against
low flying aircraft is all I can think of, and it wouldn't be at all
effective for that.) The machine gun is on there since it costs almost
nothing  (compaired to the tank itself) and it couldn't hurt.

Frank Crary
UC Berkeley