The Other McCain

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The Blessings of St. Javelin

Posted on | February 27, 2022 | Comments Off on The Blessings of St. Javelin

This image of a saint wielding an FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missile has become an iconic symbol of the Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion. When you see video of destroyed Russian tanks and armored personnel carriers, chances are it was a Javelin that did the damage.

The Javelin is quite a sophisticated weapon, so much so that a single missile costs more than $80,000. It is a “fire-and-forget” weapon; once the target is acquired through the sighting system, the missile locks onto the target and as soon as it is fired, the crew can run for cover or change their position. However, because of the missile’s “soft launch” technology, the location of the Javelin crew is not revealed to the enemy forces, who may not even know what hit them, much less where it came from. Besides which, when one of your tanks gets blown up by an armor-piercing missile, your first thought is probably, “Let’s get the hell out of here,” rather than attempting to mount a counterattack.

You’ve seen news about the Russians being “bogged down” because of “unexpectedly” strong Ukrainian opposition? St. Javelin, baby!

Coffee or Die spoke with Medal of Honor recipient Clint Romesha about javelins, and their use in conventional warfare. . . .
“Now if you could put one guy up on the side of a hill with six f–king Javelin missiles, you’re stopping an entire company of tanks with one guy,” Romesha said. “They don’t even know where that sh– is coming from.
He explained that Javelins have a soft launch, so there’s no smoke trail to show where they are being launched from, nor a dirt cloud kicked up by missile backblast. . . .
Romesha also pointed out a Javelin rarely misses. He said it’s one of the best “fire and forget” launchers that can be used against armor. Lockheed Martin, the producer of Javelin missiles, boasts a 94% hit rate on targets with a firing range anywhere from 65 – 4,000 meters.

Basically, if the crew gets a good “lock” on the target, this sucker will hit it at a range of two miles or more. When President Zelensky says he needs “ammunition” to defend his country, it’s more Javelins he needs the most urgently, and the Biden administration will have to answer for why it didn’t supply Ukraine more of these weapons in the weeks leading up to the Russian invasion. By the way, some of my conservative friends have noted that in Ukraine’s war against Russia, liberals have finally discovered a “nationalism” they can endorse. And given the role played by the Javelin in Ukraine’s resistance, perhaps some liberals will reconsider their habit of whining about the “military-industrial complex.” Raytheon and Lockheed-Martin, routinely portrayed as villains by “anti-war” liberals, turn out to be the source of Putin’s worst nightmares.




 

Category: Military, Russia, Ukraine

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