Tanks for the Memories

There have been some unexpected casualties in the Iraq war -Abrams tanks.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. military's Abrams tank, designed during the Cold War
to withstand the fiercest blows from the best Soviet tanks, is getting knocked
out at surprising rates by the low-tech bombs and rocket-propelled grenades of
Iraqi insurgents.

In the all-out battles of the 1991 Gulf War, only 18 Abrams tanks were lost
and no soldiers in them killed. But since the March 2003 invasion of Iraq, with
tanks in daily combat against the unexpectedly fierce insurgency, the Army says
80 of the 69-ton behemoths have been damaged so badly they had to be shipped
back to the United States.

At least five soldiers have been killed inside the tanks when they hit
roadside bombs, according to figures from the Army's Armor Center at Fort Knox,
Ky. At least 10 more have died while riding partially exposed from open
hatches.

The casualties are the lowest in any Army vehicles, despite how often the
Abrams is targeted - about 70% of the more than 1,100 tanks used in Iraq have
been struck by enemy fire, mostly with minor damage.

There's a lot going on over there we're not hearing much about.