SgtMuhammed

In OPFOR land we called them: M1 - Mike 1 M2/M3 - Brad Any Humvee or truck - Ash and trash Medic 113's - Band aids (The order to kill the last two was "Give them a training event.") Leopard II - Leo's Any Dutch APC - Yip The rest were the same as everyone else calls them.

You young'uns and your non-throwing tracks. My 113 used to throw track 4 times before I even started the engine. Standing knee deep in half frozen mud trying to hammer track together is one of the special joys of armored life.

All small arms sound about the same whizzing past you. You really need to get into the larger stuff before you really notice a change in sound. Now when you hear the double pull of the charging handle from the .50 Cal it is hard to mistake it for something else.

They are both standard equipment in a armored brigade. Plus the MICLIC is just a box. You can mount it on a truck if you need to.

Of course Armageddon would mean that any war had spread to Israel because the final battle is supposed to take place at Megiddo.

Not sure about the ratio. One of my old CO's was in the relief column in Somalia and he loved the Mk19. He felt that it was the best thing in the world for clearing upper floor rooms. One burst and no more sniper. Personally I would prefer a 50/50 mix.

No, there were over 30,000+ PzIVs built. I'm at work so I don't have my books. The big cats were very rare compared to the more vanilla Panzers. Now you can say that when encountered they tend to be in company strength, at least early in the war. Later they tend to be scattered about just as the other armored vehicles were.

And they aren't black.

Of course all this brings us to the main point of the thread. I just don't believe hand to hand is such a big part of modern combat as to warrent a large expenditure of effort. I don't have a real problem with how it is implemented now.

The Mk19 is a 40mm and has about the same blast as a grenade. Because of the blast effect you can shoot around someone and expect to have effects but dropping rounds behind a wall like a mortar just isn't going to happen unless they have really changed the mounts since I last fired one.

Obviously I mean a verson of it. A 76mm Stryker would be able to carry a lot more ammo than a 105 armed one. I do agree about the interservice rivalries. Then again they both use the Blackhawk.

The main reason for hand to hand and bayonette training is to try to convince soldiers that the only deadly thing about the infantry is the infantryman. If the only option soldiers think they have is to fire at an opponent then they will find themselves in constant fear of situations where their firearms are useless. Showing them that they can kill with anything is a psychological advantage. At least the Army hopes it is. It is more effective to turn the rifle around and club someone with it. Everyone knows how to use a club, most people are very clumsy with a knife and the rudimentry training given by most armies does little to change this. Mele weapons require constant practice to remain proficient. No modern army does this. Duke is right though, the bayonette as a viable weapon system was obsolete once reliable firearms became standard issue.

Stalingrad has a nice Tank v Infantry scene. Might make an interesting small battle.

Yes, the modern U.S. e-tool is garbage. If they don't bring you pioneer tools it is nearly impossible to dig-in in anything other than very loose soil or sand. Hit a couple of rocks and you immediatly begin sacrificing them to the foxhole gods. You could probably whack one or two people before you are left with a short lenght of pipe in your hand. In more ways than one.

It was a pretty good piece. It was funny because I was stationed at Lewis twice and they showed a lot of my old stomping grounds. Literally, I was a light fighter. I just wonder, with all the trouble they are having with the 105 system why they don't switch to a smaller gun. Use the 76mm that they use on the OHP class FFGs. Sure they would have to do a little more developement to get it up but no more than is projected with the 105 and they would probably be able to get it on a 130 a lot easier. With modern ammo they can get a lot better performance than in the past. One little gripe. This is not so much about the show but about the Army calling the Mk19 an indirect fire weapon. Yes the projectiles have an arch but they don't have the same trajectory as a mortar. Unless the mount can raise the muzzle up to 90 degrees it is really a direct fire weapon with some indirect ability. I was a gunner on the Mk19 during my first tour at Lewis and all of our "indirect" engagements involved a lot of the same stuff they used to make the Sherman an indirect platform, driving the Hummer onto a ramp or facing it up a hill. It is a great weapon but its capabilities are often misstated.

I think GD'd tanks align the turret to the front. At least I have never noticed one doing otherwise.

I don't know how many M1 and Brad side skirt pieces I found sticking out of trees at Hohenfels. I tried to take one as a war trophy but it was too damn heavy. In "King of the Killing Field" I believe it said that the M1 has about the same flank and rear protection as the M60 (been a few years since I read it though). A big difference is the damage control stuff. The fire surpression and ammo stowage go a long way towards preventing the big boom even if you do punch through the shell. More importantly they keep those silly treadheads inside from deceasing.

Yeah, that's what I meant.

Realistic modeling of modern weapon systems and tactics.

I think they already said yes the Brad will be in.

What were the Allies supposed to do? Did they exit maybe?

No Sergei is right. It is a spigot mortar. The spring initiates the charge which propells the round and (hopefully) recocks the spring. The first time a friend of mine told me about them I envisioned something like a giant lollipop that shot the candy at you.

I don't really see a need to do anything different than the way it is currently handled. Hand to hand is taught to soldiers but really in a very basic way. Our drill sergeant used to say the military taught you just enough to get your ass kicked. If you want formal training you learned it yourself. Elite forces get a lot more but it is still a last resort thing. Not something that demands a lot of special treatment.

Hi Mom. Whew, think I just made it.

My favorite arty boo boo. Playtesting one of my own scenarios. The Germans had taken one of my forward positions and were swarming around it. I drop a module of 105 on them and send a Sherman to clean up. The last volley falls while my Sherm is still a good 500 meters off, except for the very last round which is late and short. Great shot if you think about it. Right in the TC hatch, nothing but net. I think it is still my only dead on Hollywood explosion kill with arty. Everything else was the old immobilize, abandon type.