Concrete bombs in GW 2

[bobward]

Perhaps someone here might b able to help with this question?

During the second Gulf War, I heard a rumour that the RAF used concrete filled laser guided bombs to hit Republican Guard tanks etc that were hidden in villages and othert built up areas. The reason given is that the shear kinetic effect of a 1,000 brick doing x hundre knots was enough to disable the target, and casue minimal collateral damage.

As far as I recall, I can't remember ever seeing this in any sort of official history of the war. Can any Pruner help with this, and, if posible provide pictures for the record?

Thanks in advance and regards
BW

[Davef68]

There was certainly media coverage of them having the option of practice bombs rather than explosive ones for that reason.

BBC NEWS | Middle East | Tornados to drop 'concrete bombs' (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2919249.stm)

How many were actually dropped is another matter!

The French used them in 2011 in Libya

http://defensetech.org/2011/04/29/france-using-concrete-bombs-in-libya/

[Centaurus]

The reason given is that the shear kinetic effect of a 1,000 brick doing x hundre knots was enough to disable the target, and casue minimal collateral damage.
Certainly would give the occupants of the tank a headache. Reminds me of the time I was flying a 737 Nauru to Tarawa in the Central Pacific Region circa 1982. The atoll of Betio was situated on one side of Tarawa Lagoon which was about 25 miles across.

Betio atoll was one mile long by 800 yards wide and in 1943 US marines stormed the atoll to take the airstrip from 4000 Japanese who had strongly fortified the Betio beaches. The three day battle was slaughter on both sides but in the end the US marines won.
Air Nauru was the airline that flew into several wartime Pacific islands and often we carried American veterans visiting old battle-grounds. As we approached Tarawa one of the flight attendants brought up this old former US marine to the cockpit and we invited him to take the jump seat.

I asked him if he would like to have a close look at Betio on the way into landing at the main Tarawa runway 10 miles away on another atoll. He told us he was in the first wave of landing craft to hit the beaches of Betio on that day in November 1943. The Japs had the beaches covered by machine gun fire and US casualties were severe. As we flew at 500 feet over the main invasion beach at Betio, the old chap said the Japanese used to hide in 44 gallon drums dug into the sand and would pop up and shoot then disappear back into the drum. The old soldier told us the only way they could fix the problem was to toss a hand grenade into the 44 gallon drum. Of course you can imagine the result. My first officer, a man of great humour said to the old soldier "Cor! I bet that made their ears ring"... I was still laughing as we touched down a few minutes later in one of the hardest landings I had ever made..:ok: