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| A group of destroyed Iraqi tanks, with the vehicles at the bottom of the photo and to the right showing the results of the jack-in-the-box effect. USMC Photo by MSGT Howard J. Farrell (Source) |
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| M-60A3s participating in REFORGER near Giessen, Germany, 1985. (Source) |
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I mean, they're friggin' awesome lookin' ain't they?
But one thing led to another, the Army was insistent on making me a technician. I didn't want that, I wanted tanks. Damn it.
So what happened? I decided that if I was going to be a technician, it would be on aircraft. Fighter aircraft. Goodbye Army, hello Air Force.
Ah, what might have been.
Anyhoo...
Juvat likes tanks with their turrets all blowed off. So I figured I'd oblige him. I learned today that the whole turret coming off thing actually (according to the OAFSSRFTOTN) has a name! The Jack-in-the-box effect. No, really.
Ouch.
Here's two examples of why tanks and missiles don't play nicely together...
Okay, nothing to do with tanks but I need some Dropkick Murphys, so I'm sharing. It's what we former wild rovers do, we share.
From what I remember, the fit of the turret is so good, it isn't fastened on. The huge pressure of the internal explosion blows the lid right off. I, too, thought about serving in those massive beasts.... But I remembered what the Germans called them: Tommy Cookers. um.... no thanks.
ReplyDeleteSTxAR
The Brit tankers called their Shermans "Ronsons," after the cigarette lighter.
DeleteDidn't quite realize how big the M-60 tank is until my wife and were watching a Memorial Day parade and an M-60 cruised by. The tank stopped and pointed the tube at a small boy then did a 360 turn. The muzzle never wavered and it was way impressive.
ReplyDeleteThat 120 MM main gun works out to be about four and a quarter inches. That is just under the Navy's 5"/54 gun.
After I was in the Navy Reserves for a while, I did a little research on changing over to Army Armor. Basic answer was there were never any openings and never any promotions because these guys got the chance to be tankers on the weekend and never left until they were forced to retire.
Yeah, I had a buddy in a Guard armored unit. He loved his one weekend a month and two weeks a year.
DeleteI think tanks appeal to many guys. Something about all that power and menace.
Well....as they say, "Tanks!"
ReplyDelete:)
DeleteDropkick Murphys crowds and the Jack in the Box effect seem to share a lot of basic chemistry.
ReplyDeleteNow that you mention it...
DeleteTanks? Can you say, "Perpetual motor stables"?
ReplyDeleteWhy yes, I do believe an acquaintance of mine may have mentioned something along those lines.
DeleteI stole a tank once...
ReplyDeleteWhy am I not surprised. I'm guessing you gave it back, eventually.
DeleteOh, the humanity!
ReplyDeleteI need a tank. When I hit that powerball, I'm buying one. Then I will set myself up as warlord of my WV county because I know for a fact that the Sheriff has nothing to knock one out. And yes, I did ask.
Heh.
DeleteNeed any minions?
Well I'd planned to hire an army of Amazon mercenary chicks, but there's always room for you on any of my adventures...especially ones that might eventually require a fall guy.
DeleteI get it, I get it. A boarding ladder drops in a museum and you point to me, saying "He showed me where it was!"
DeleteYeah, I can do that.
If you get a chance, read the account of 'The Battle of 73 Easting' in Iraq in Desert Storm. Of course, at that time, all the Jack-in-the-Boxes occurred in the ranks of the Republican Guard tanks, which was an amazing sight to see, as described by H.R. McMaster, tank Commander. Talk about a hot knife through butter. And those that didn't flip their tops were left, more often than not, eviscerated hulks on the battlefield, usually with two holes in the turret; entrance and exit holes created by the inert kinetic energy Sabot rounds, which left the Americans' tank barrels at a speed of MACH 5.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip, I will check that out. As I recall the Abrams performance has been quite good since its inception. Fast, well-armored, and packs a deadly punch.
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