Commandos vs aircraft
Discussion
Suppose you are in charge of a small group of troops hiding near an airfield in enemy territory and tasked to disable half a dozen specific aircraft. Similar to the raids that were speculated about during the Falklands war as a way of dealing with Super Etendards.
What's the best way of doing it? Small arms fire from a distance seems the easiest, or would you have to actually blow them up?
What's the best way of doing it? Small arms fire from a distance seems the easiest, or would you have to actually blow them up?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raid_on_Pebble_Islan...
I'm ww2 it was a mix of timed charges and small arms fire.
Falklands ended up being the same
I think it'd still be the same now. With more time or specific knowledge of the aircraft you could achieve it more quietly, taking more time, but given the choice between a fast commando raid and a slower one, I'd take fast all day long!
I'm ww2 it was a mix of timed charges and small arms fire.
Falklands ended up being the same
I think it'd still be the same now. With more time or specific knowledge of the aircraft you could achieve it more quietly, taking more time, but given the choice between a fast commando raid and a slower one, I'd take fast all day long!
ianrb said:
Was part of the plan to kill the Argentine pilots? The logic being that aircraft could, with difficulty, be replaced, but it takes years to train new pilots.
they would have had a fair few fast jet rated pilots on the A4/mirage/knockoff mirages, transferring to the enterdard wouldn't have been a colossal leap? Compared to limited enterdard aircraft with no possible replacement parts procurement.
Spotter in relatively close, and two or three sniper teams nicely tucked into the landscape at a distance ? Most pilots would be reluctant to take up a fast jet that could have had a large calibre round go through the engine intake. Few more rounds into the canopy and radome for fun.
Minimal exposure compared to having to put in charges or be close enough for small arms. There's an added bonus that the teams could target any immediate guard response from the airfield, well before it got close. Time the action for dusk and then retreat out through the night.
Minimal exposure compared to having to put in charges or be close enough for small arms. There's an added bonus that the teams could target any immediate guard response from the airfield, well before it got close. Time the action for dusk and then retreat out through the night.
My dad served in the RAF during WW2. While in Egypt, some sneaky bugger had crept in during the night and selected "Undercarriage UP" on all the planes parked in dispersal. The idea being that when the engines were started the U/C would fold up and the props/engines would be wrecked; luckily it was spotted in time.
Newc said:
Spotter in relatively close, and two or three sniper teams nicely tucked into the landscape at a distance ? Most pilots would be reluctant to take up a fast jet that could have had a large calibre round go through the engine intake. Few more rounds into the canopy and radome for fun.
Minimal exposure compared to having to put in charges or be close enough for small arms. There's an added bonus that the teams could target any immediate guard response from the airfield, well before it got close. Time the action for dusk and then retreat out through the night.
I guess most of the planes would be stored in those jet bunkers rather than all out in the open, so you'd have to hit them moving, and giveaway your position/presence after only scoring one or two hits?Minimal exposure compared to having to put in charges or be close enough for small arms. There's an added bonus that the teams could target any immediate guard response from the airfield, well before it got close. Time the action for dusk and then retreat out through the night.
Interesting how if you Google-earth RAF bases there's hardly anything really businesslike to sniff at, but swing over to somewhere like nellis and there's a war fleet that by itself is probably more than most countries entire air capability.
CanAm said:
My dad served in the RAF during WW2. While in Egypt, some sneaky bugger had crept in during the night and selected "Undercarriage UP" on all the planes parked in dispersal. The idea being that when the engines were started the U/C would fold up and the props/engines would be wrecked; luckily it was spotted in time.
I don’t know when they were first installed, but undercarriage selectors have had a couple of preventions in place for a long long time. In other words, the undercarriage won’t even try to go up until the weight is off wheels. 
Send a crack team of painters in to adorn each aircraft with RAF roundels and the words 'Air Cadets'. From past experience, that should keep them out of the air for between two years and permanently.
Seriously though, anything from shoulder-launched guided missiles to multi-rotor drones, carrying random bits of hardened steel, flown into the air intakes could be done without getting too close. The SAS approach of jeeps and satchel bombs was effective, but exposed the attackers to counter attack, plus needs the Jeeps to be delivered to the area, which may lose the element of surprise.
Seriously though, anything from shoulder-launched guided missiles to multi-rotor drones, carrying random bits of hardened steel, flown into the air intakes could be done without getting too close. The SAS approach of jeeps and satchel bombs was effective, but exposed the attackers to counter attack, plus needs the Jeeps to be delivered to the area, which may lose the element of surprise.
Taking out an engine doesn’t disable an aircraft for very long really, and a decent battle damage repair team would make good the intakes quite swiftly.
An incendiary round into the fuselage and fuel tank/s will only result in holes and a fuel leak. The tanks will be full and possibly self-sealing, so a Hollywood explosion is unlikely.
An incendiary round into the fuselage and fuel tank/s will only result in holes and a fuel leak. The tanks will be full and possibly self-sealing, so a Hollywood explosion is unlikely.
Gassing Station | Boats, Planes & Trains | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff