TFW2005
Hisstank
Thundercats
TokuNation
Toyark
Home
News
G.I. Joe Movie
G.I. Joe Classified
G.I. Joe Vintage
Compatible Military Toys
G.I. Joe Comics
G.I. Joe Conventions
All News Categories
Photo Shoots
Database
G.I. Joe Database Index
G.I. Joe Classified
G.I. Joe 25th Anniversary
G.I. Joe Resolute
G.I. Joe Movie
G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra
G.I. Joe Renegades
G.I. Joe 30th Anniversary
G.I. Joe Retaliation
G.I. Joe Basic
G.I. Joe 50th Anniversary
G.I. Joe Con & Club
G.I. Joe FSS
Forum
Recent Posts Page
Characters
Snake Eyes
Cobra Commander
Destro
Baroness
Storm Shadow
Roadblock
Companies
Fun Pub
IDW
DeNA
Sideshow
Gentle Giant
Boss Fight
Ori Toy
Marauder
HissTank.com
>
HissTank.com - G.I. Joe
Integration
User Name
Remember Me?
Password
Rules
Register
Community
Today's Posts
Search
Community Links
Social Groups
Pictures & Albums
Members List
Search Forums
Show Threads
Show Posts
Advanced Search
Go to Page...
Thread
:
What secrets lurk in the filecards?
View Single Post
06-18-2011, 12:09 AM
zuludelta
EQ-Viper
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Canada
Posts: 4,343
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Stormgard
Barely armored at all, but providing mobility, serious firepower, and best of all - air droppable! There's something very cool about the BMD concept, even if it hasn't quite caught on.
Airborne armour probably never really caught on in a significant way anywhere else outside of the Soviet Union because of the paucity of airdrop-certified practical armoured vehicles. An armoured vehicle would have to be sufficiently light to be air-transportable and air-droppable, and I guess trying to get at that "sweet spot" in vehicle weight and configuration where the armour is still sufficiently effective against 12.7 x 99mm NATO whilst still light enough for LVAD or LAPES is just too much trouble, especially since mass parachute operations haven't really been used or deemed especially effective (compared to more traditional airmobile means of deployment) since the Korean War.
I know the US tried to use lightened M113s as air-drop certified airborne armoured vehicles back in the 1960s and 1970s, but IIRC, the conclusion was that there weren't really very many situations that called for such a vehicle (and the M113 had to lose so much armour to make the weight that its skin could easily be penetrated by fire from AK-47s, rendering the "armour" designation rather moot). The concept was tried again for the Carter Administration's planned RDF (Rapid Deployment Force), but was scrapped along with the whole RDF concept in the mid-1980s.
I think the current Pandur II 6x6 and 8x8 vehicles in use by some NATO countries are airdrop-certified, although I don't know if they're actually used specifically as airborne armoured vehicles (as opposed to conventional armoured vehicles).
__________________
zuludelta
View Public Profile
Send a private message to zuludelta
Find More Posts by zuludelta
Sponsors
Recent Threads
G.I. Joe Classified Series Official Thread 2024!
Super7 Ultimates (Could-be the Official) Thread
Super7 x G.I. Joe REACTION and O-RING!
G.I. Joe x Transformers Movie is Official
G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra New Video Game
Fans Hobby Skyhawk images
Marauder Task Force Super Thread
Delta-17 o-ring line
Classified Techno-Viper (#117)
Grid Iron Studios Official HissTank.com Mega Thread
Classified Quick Kick (#116)
JoyToy Kitbash Thread
The West Coast GI Joe & Toy Show June 9th, 2024
Classified Recondo (Retro)
G.I.Joe Classified Picture thread
Classified Scarlett (Retro)
Classified Big Boa (#114)
O-Ring Returns to G.I. Joe
Dirtwing
Every Classified Figure Ranked / Classified Figure...
Classified Duke (Retro)
Classified Zartan v2
Candy Apel Apprecation
Definitive Best 2001 Figure Poll
Cobra Commander #4 (SPOILERS)
Recent Off Topic Threads
What song are you listening to?
G.I. Joe March Madness 2024 Championship Battle Armor...
Hisstank Late Night thread...
Last Movie You Watched?
JazWares 18th Halo
Recent B/S/T Threads
MagicWazard's B/S/T thread
MOBAT sticker sheet
Extra Classified Storm Shadow & Cobra Officer -...
Classified B/S/T
looking for weapons and assorted pieces 25th Ann -50...
WTB or Trade for a Classified VAMP
VAMP box?