"Wow, shoulder-launched Big BLUs! That's amazing. Those guys must be lifting weights."
MARINE CORPS EYES PORTABLE THERMOBARIC WARHEAD FOR URBAN OPS
Naval researchers are developing a portable version of the thermobaric bombs employed to clear caves and bunkers in Afghanistan for the Marine Corps to use in urban combat.
Thermobaric weapons are fuel-rich explosives that suck air from its target, creating a lethal combination of heat and pressure that burns longer than conventional explosives. The weapons are effective on hardened, underground facilities, which are among the most difficult targets to eliminate.
Scientists and engineers at Indian Head, MD-based Naval Surface Warfare Center are fabricating a thermobaric warhead that can operate with the shoulder-mounted multipurpose assault weapon.
According to a statement from Naval Sea Systems Command, the Marines were so impressed with the success of thermobaric weapons used in Operation Enduring Freedom that they approached the Indian Head researchers and requested a shoulder-mounted version of their own.
The Marines expect to receive the shoulder-mounted thermobaric arms in the near term, according to Maj. Thomas Bowers, the infantry requirements officer in the materials division at the Marine Corps Combat Development Command.
In “definitely less than a year” the warheads should be in the hands of some Marines, though it is not slated to go out to every unit, Bowers told Inside the Navy last week.
the US Marines are getting shoulder-mounted thermobaric weapons which, if ready in time for a war with Iraq, could have devestating potential in streetfighting in Baghdad. Wow, shoulder-launched Big BLUs! That's amazing, Those guys must be lifting weights.
Oh no. There's been a thermobaric warhead available for the Soviet-designed RPG-7 rocket-grenade launcher for several years now, [GTB-7G] and the Russians have found it quite useful for streetfighting in Grozny. The concept should work just as well with Marine MAWS and SMAWS.
But the idea that we're thinking of going in to clean buildings in cities is an unsettling one, and a potential source for large numbers of American casualties. Let's hope the US troops have a lot of those thermobaric housebreakers available in their tricky-bags.
