Chapter 666: Merkava Armor
Suddenly, Nako frowned. Dust rose up from the opposite side. An armored unit was heading towards them!
"Attention, there is a situation on the other side, prepare for battle!" Nako shouted loudly on the radio.
What is coming? If it is the old-fashioned T-54 tank of the PLO, we will not have any pressure. However, if it is a Syrian tank, it is hard to say, especially, I heard that Syria recently imported a batch of tanks from the Soviet Union, all of which are T-72. On the battlefield of the island country, the most advanced M1 tank of the United States cannot withstand the attack of the 125mm tank gun of the T-72, not to mention these Merkava tanks!
Nako knew his tanks well.
However, Syria is fighting with the Turks, so they shouldn't send T-72 tanks here, right? The main tank force of the Syrians in the Bekaa Valley is still just the T-62 tank. This kind of tank is their old enemy. Their 105mm tank gun, firing the self-developed M111 tungsten alloy armor-piercing projectile, can easily destroy it!
The M111 armor-piercing projectile was the best armor-piercing projectile in the 1980s, with a length-to-diameter ratio of 14 to 1. Even Germany praised this armor-piercing projectile and imported a large number of them.
The two sides were approaching each other rapidly, and finally, the outlines of each other could be clearly seen from the sight. Nako was startled, thinking that what he feared would come true!
That brick-like appearance, that tall and long gun barrel, that unique shape, isn't it the T-72 tank that is currently the most used in actual combat in the Soviet Union? Damn, how many T-72 tanks do the Syrians have?
What to do? Now, the two sides are in the hedging stage. If you don't want to fight, you can turn around now, leave quickly, and call the air force to kill them!
However... this is not appropriate, because the T-72 tank has very good mobility. Even if we want to run, we may not be able to escape. Moreover, the Air Force is bombing Beirut with all its might, and I am afraid they will not be able to take care of us here. When the Air Force arrives, we may be left to collect our bodies. Instead of being hit during the retreat, it is better to fight openly!
The armor of the enemy might not be able to withstand the blow, but the tank guns of the enemy are also capable of penetrating the enemy's armor! After all, the Soviets always had the standard of exporting tanks. In the battle of the island country, the performance of the Soviets' own version was very strong, but the export version would be much smaller!
Don’t be afraid, when two brave men meet on a narrow road, the brave one wins!
"M111 armor-piercing projectile, ready to fire!" Nako shouted loudly on the radio.
M111 armor-piercing shell! The gunner skillfully put a metallic shell from the gun carriage, and the gunner began to aim quickly. The Matador Mk1 fire control system was developed by an Israeli company and had advanced performance. However, the distance between the two sides was two kilometers, so they needed to get the opponent closer before they could open fire.
At this moment, the gunner was surprised to find that the muzzle of the Syrian tank opposite was spewing out clouds of black smoke, and the other side had already fired artillery shells!
How is that possible? Even a 125mm tank gun can't fire that far! Damn, the enemy is using a gun-launched missile!
The Israeli tank drivers were familiar with the performance of the Soviet-made weapons used by the other side. At this moment, they accurately judged the other side's weapons. Unexpectedly, Syria was also generous and launched so many artillery-launched missiles to greet them.
"Quick, release the smoke screen!" Nako was also surprised, and then he gave the order. Facing the artillery-fired missiles, it was useless for the enemy to speed up or slow down, because the missiles were able to turn! The only way for the enemy was to release the smoke screen to cover the enemy!
On the turret, the smoke launcher continuously spewed out smoke in an attempt to camouflage the Merkava tank, but unfortunately, it was too late!
The maximum range of the 9M119 artillery-launched missile is four kilometers. Now, in order to kill Israel, the enemy, the Syrian tank soldiers fired the artillery-launched missile at a distance of two kilometers! After the missile flew out of the muzzle, the engine ignited and pushed the missile forward. Before the smoke screen covered the entire Israeli tank unit, the artillery-launched missile had already flown in front!
"Boom!" The 9M119 gun-launched missile flew to the main armor of the Merkava tank. At the moment of collision with the armor, the first-stage hollow armor-piercing charge cap was detonated, and together with the rocket engine behind it, it blasted open the spaced armor that the Merkava tank was proud of and drilled in!
In the eyes of the Israelis, the Merkava has the best defense in the world. However, the development of tanks also requires a lot of experience accumulation, especially the tank's armor, which cannot be achieved overnight!
The British Chobham armor can be said to be the best armor of this era. The British would never provide it to the Israelis. The only country that could obtain Chobham armor technology was the United States. Even Germany was fooled by the British. The Leopard 2 tank was called the Cat 2 tank because of its insufficient protection.
No matter how much the Israelis brag, they started from scratch, began designing in 1967, built the first Merkava tank prototype in 1974, and the first batch of production Merkava Mk1 tanks were delivered to the Israeli Army in 1979. This progress was quite fast. It is impossible for the Israelis to master the technology of advanced composite armor in such a short period of time!
The United States and Israel are good, but neither Chobham armor nor depleted uranium armor can be exported to Israel. Therefore, the outside of the engine in front of the Merkava tank is just ordinary homogeneous armor!
What is the result? The 9M119 tandem warhead, the first-stage hollow armor-piercing charge cap in front, is actually only used to attack reactive armor, but now, this warhead has blasted open the main armor in front of the Merkava tank and drilled into the engine!
This does not count as a damage to the Merkava. After all, for the Merkava tank, the engine is also used as armor!
The huge hole that was blasted out destroyed half of the engine, and at the same time, the second-stage hollow armor-piercing charge cap, which was the main charge, also shot out a high-temperature and high-pressure metal heat flow! This heat flow continued to rush forward!
"Boom!" The metal heat flow successfully penetrated the engine compartment, but it was splashed everywhere, greatly reducing its power. Coincidentally, a stream of metal heat flow hit a 105mm tank shell! Instantly, a violent detonation occurred!