2nd Infantry Division among the first
to train with new armor-piercing weapon
By Jeremy Kirk, Seoul bureau
chief
Andy Dunaway / Stars and Stripes
Sgt. Gabriel Zimmerman of Baker Company, 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry at Camp Greaves
makes sure the flight path for the round from the Javelin is clear. |
CAMP GREAVES — Soldiers throughout the 2nd Infantry Division are
training on a new, armor-piercing weapon that can slice through a tank like an arrow
through a soda can.
“It has revolutionized the ability of light infantry to kill big
tanks,” said Maj. Thomas E. Hiebert, executive officer for the 1st Battalion, 506th
Infantry at Camp Greaves near the Demilitarized Zone.
Units in South Korea are among the first overseas to get the Javelin.
The Javelin — a defensive weapon that can be used day or night — is a drastic
improvement over the Dragon, a wire-guided system. The Dragon required infantrymen to fire
the weapon, keeping the target in sight for as long as 12 seconds to guide it.
The Javelin uses “fire and forget” technology in a
disposable launch tube. A soldier focuses on the target, fires and then can quickly leave
to avoid a counterattack. A computer in the round takes a picture of the target 60 times
per second to track it.
After the missile is fired, the launch tube can be discarded, said
28-year-old Staff Sgt. Richard Jones, a weapons squad leader with 1st Battalion, 506th
Infantry. The targeting system — contained in the 15-pound Command Launch Unit —
quickly detaches from the launch tube and is taken by the soldier.
With a missile, the system weighs about 48 pounds. Each platoon has
two Javelin gunners who carry one missile each, Hiebert said. Jones showed a video of a
Javelin live fire. After a small burst, the missile pops out of the tube, and then its
rocket engine kicks in, sending the round to the target. The round ruptures the
tank’s armor and heats to 1,300 degrees, searing the inside of the tank.
A trainer is available to teach soldiers the basics with scenarios
that help soldiers judge the weapon’s range and how to fire, Jones said.
“It’s like a big Nintendo game,” Jones said.
Recently, soldiers of the battalion were practicing firing positions
and different ways of carrying it, and Jones said the weapon is exciting for soldiers.
“Especially the new soldiers who haven’t seen it and
haven’t heard about it,” Jones said.
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