I remember reading one of the assets used was a kinetic strike munition. Basically a bomb casing with concrete in place of the charge. Strap a JDAM kit and minimize collateral damage. Just a big (500 pound) rock at terminal velocity. Probably a line Tech Sergeant came up with it.

That’s awesome. I guess if you can put a munition on a dime, a 500lb rock traveling at ridiculous velocity is a nice tool to have in the box.

Who wouldda thunk. A good example of not spending a million dollars on a missile for a small job. I've often wondered when we get into a real shooting war with a significant enemy, what we will do when we run out of expensive munitions while the enemy has many tons of regular munitions to finish the job. I'm assuming the war planners have that covered... one would hope.

quote:

Originally posted by Citadel:
I remember reading one of the assets used was a kinetic strike munition. Basically a bomb casing with concrete in place of the charge. Strap a JDAM kit and minimize collateral damage. Just a big (500 pound) rock at terminal velocity. Probably a line Tech Sergeant came up with it.

I remember hearing about a old story with this lil guy named David and a rock. I think he won. So kinda fitting.

quote:

Originally posted by Citadel:
I remember reading one of the assets used was a kinetic strike munition. Basically a bomb casing with concrete in place of the charge. Strap a JDAM kit and minimize collateral damage. Just a big (500 pound) rock at terminal velocity. Probably a line Tech Sergeant came up with it.

Ha, that is literally called BL&P (blind, loaded & plugged) round. In artillery it’s just filled with sand or concrete to approximate the weight of the payload/warhead/filler...usually painted bright blue so everyone knows it’s inert.

I’ve seen bombs the same way, but I wasn’t a zoomie and can only assume ordnance colors is the same across services/munitions

quote:

Originally posted by wrightd:
Who wouldda thunk. A good example of not spending a million dollars on a missile…

The expense of JDAM, LGB, LJDAM, AGM, etc. is not the explosive but the guidance kit. These aren’t much cheaper. As I said on the previous page, if you want to hit a moving target your weapon needs to be laser guided. That’s not cheap, even if you’re dropping concrete.

quote:

Originally posted by CPD SIG:
I remember hearing about a old story with this lil guy named David and a rock. I think he won. So kinda fitting.

They made a statue of the guy, stands in Florence, really popular. You can even get postcards and aprons of his likeness.

Interestingly, while Iron Dome is Israel's low-level air defense, David's Sling is their mid-tier defensive system in their overall air defense umbrella.

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:

quote:

Originally posted by CPD SIG:
I remember hearing about a old story with this lil guy named David and a rock. I think he won. So kinda fitting.

They made a statue of the guy, stands in Florence, really popular. You can even get postcards and aprons of his likeness.

Interestingly, while Iron Dome is Israel's low-level air defense, David's Sling is their mid-tier defensive system in their overall air defense umbrella.

There are at least 3 "David" statues in Florence and more in other places. Only one is original, of course, but the others are very good copies.

flashguy

https://www.powerlineblog.com/...-aps-gaza-office.php

Yesterday the IDF issued this announcement:

During Operation “Guardians of the Walls” the IDF struck the al-Jalaa building on May 15th, 2021. The site was used by the Hamas terror organization for intelligence R&D and to carry out SIGINT (signals intelligence), ELINT (electronic signals intelligence), and EW (electronic warfare) operations, targeting both IDF operational activity and civilian systems in Israel.

One of the main goals of these efforts was to develop a system that would disrupt the Iron Dome aerial defense system.

The purpose of the IDF strike was to curtail these enemy capabilities, including destroying special equipment, and preventing their use during the operation. According to IDF assessments, the equipment was in the building at the time of the strike. The strike was designed to collapse the building in order to ensure the destruction of the special means.

The target was of high military value to Hamas and was vetted according to rigorous procedures within the IDF, and in accordance with international law.

In light of the nature of the target, prior to the strike, the IDF provided civilians in the building advance warning. Significant efforts were made to enable civilians to evacuate the building. The evacuation process was meticulous, and as a result, no civilians were harmed.

This event should be put into context – Hamas intentionally operates within the civilian population of Gaza and does so in order to hamper the IDF’s operational activity.

The IDF will continue to maintain the security of Israeli citizens, while doing its best to prevent any possible harm to non-combatants.