ISIS takes out Abrams M1 tank with ATGM Kornet missile in Mosul

RT.com ^ | 10/26/2016 | RT.com

[AC Beach Patrol]

The Abrams M1 main battle tank was hit from behind with a 9M133 Kornet anti-tank missile at the Qurayyah crossroads south of Mosul, said the IS-affiliated Amaq news agency.

[castlebrew]

Cue the Cisco Kid -

“...little ba$tard shot me in the a$$!”

[Lion Den Dan]

Could the crew survive that? The ammo is in an isolated compartment and you can see the blast doors flying away.=============

Most assuredly, the crew could have and likely did survive. The "blast Doors" seen flying away are blow out panels designed to blow out and relieve pressure inside the ammo compartment. The Abrams tank is not invincible but it is a sure enough tough tank.

[spetznaz]

And the flames?

[Thunder 6]

Okay, assuming this wasn’t just an abandoned tank they popped an ATGM at for laughs/propaganda purposes, here are a few observations from a guy who saw a tank once:

The IA crew (if not asleep or already dead) deserved to die for being this stupid...for example: No crew up and scanning for missile pops, tank skylined on ridge, no dismounted infantry support (that we can see) to safe the approaches the ATGM crew would use, no wing-man tank to help scan 360 degrees.

It appears this missile was shot from behind the tank, so they either got past the tank unit’s security, or the tank/infantry unit failed to spot them and had bypassed them...either way they were stupid and paid the price. There is literally no excuse for this to happen to even a minimally trained tank crew with thermal sights and on-board machine guns...but we are talking about the IA.

Now, while the explosion and pretty flames are fun to look at, it appears the turret ammo storage blowout panels worked as advertised. If the turret was buttoned up, not filed with flammable trash, the halon system was charged and the crew wearing nomex, they may well have survived.

But they certainly didn’t deserve it...

regards,