Timeline for Minimum force needed for an air strike against a wind farm?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
11 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Apr 27, 2021 at 14:19 | comment | added | Nosajimiki | @MontyWild a 20mm will not penetrate more than ~15mm of armor grade steel with most rounds only rated for closer to 6-7mm. At most you would potmark the gear assembly, and maybe jam it if you get really lucky to put a pot mark on a gear tooth surface... honestly the more I think about it, you'd pretty much have to hit the generator itself with anything smaller than a missle or 50mm cannon. The generator is a smaller target, and you gun crews will need to know just where to shoot, but it is still big enough a target to reliably hit if you know just where to aim | |
| Apr 27, 2021 at 14:18 | comment | added | Codes with Hammer | Wow! I didn't know that the windmill motor was that big. Load up the A-10 and AC-130 with the proper ammo (armor piercing shells aren't needed this time), and let them literally rip. | |
| Apr 27, 2021 at 13:58 | comment | added | Monty Wild♦ | @Nosajimiki, just one hit on the generator windings could short or open-circuit the generator, and the gap between the stator and rotor is typically quite small, so if either was deformed by the addition of a 20+mm slug, the generator could easily jam. Bearings could be damaged... all of which would put the generator out of action. | |
| Apr 27, 2021 at 13:53 | comment | added | Nosajimiki | Smaller windmills you could hit anywhere with an a 30mm and maybe deform the parts just enough to jam the mechanism. Against a larger windmill, you'd have to hit the generator specifically (a target the size of a minivan) which still means ripping through a few feet of copper coiling so 30mm or greater would still be recommended. So I think a 30mm is neither overkill, nor would you need anywhere near 100 rounds to get the job done. If 5-10 rounds don't get it done on a target that size, it's because the target is too tough for 30mm to be a viable option in the first place. | |
| Apr 27, 2021 at 13:52 | comment | added | Nosajimiki | @MontyWild This was my knee jerk thought too, but most modern windmill motor houses range from the size of an RV camper to slightly larger than your average 18 wheeler, and most of the internal components are giant gears and shafts made of steel that are at least a foot thick. Since A-10s are designed for targeting ground vehicles with precision, they could hit these targets with nearly every round. The problem is that even a 30mm round may be too light to do significant damage to most of the components you would be hitting. | |
| Apr 27, 2021 at 7:33 | comment | added | Monty Wild♦ | At US$136.70 per round, the 30mm cannon on the A-10 is overkill. Sure, one round could do the job, but so could one round of 20mm ammo from a regular ground-attack aircraft. On top of that, hitting with just one round expended isn't that easy... you're going to need to expend around 100 rounds to be sure of getting the right bits of equipment. In 30mm, that's almost as expensive as a Maverick, and takes longer to deliver. | |
| Apr 27, 2021 at 2:03 | comment | added | Andrew Brēza | Thank you @Fattie! | |
| Apr 26, 2021 at 22:20 | comment | added | Fattie | This is the best answer I have ever read on the internet. Actually it's just the best thing I have ever read! OMG! | |
| Apr 26, 2021 at 15:16 | comment | added | SirTain | I see you too are a man of culture. For added clarity, I expect ideal force is 15 aircraft. 200 windmills arranged into a square would be 14.14 windmills to each side which would require no less than 15 passes with aircraft. Any rectangular arrangement would be easier to target assuming you approach from the shortest side. Before the assault, you'd need to plot paths for each aircraft to define their target space. Under ideal circumstances, such a force could eliminate all targets in under 2 minutes with a single fly over. A smaller force might be possible, but involve more passes. | |
| Apr 26, 2021 at 9:30 | comment | added | Hobbamok | Perfect. We just need High explosive rounds for the A10 instead of armor breaking but those should be available, especially with the focus on asymmetric warfare that the A10 has seen in the recent years | |
| Apr 26, 2021 at 2:36 | history | answered | Andrew Brēza | CC BY-SA 4.0 |