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arethusa -> (11/4/2003 6:54:40 AM)
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[QUOTE=Frank W.]why do flamethrowers clear mines ?[/QUOTE]
Think of the mines as being tin cans full of explosives (forgetting about the trigger assembly). Would [B]you[/B] want to hold a torch to such a thing?
While there were many different kinds of explosives used, TNT can be given as an example. TNT is actually fairly hard to ignite by heat alone, it takes a lot of it to set it off but once it gets hot enough, it will explode. The usual way to set TNT off is with a detonator that causes compression as well as heat, sort of like a diesel engine.
When I was in the artillery, at the end of an exercise we always had to dispose of the unused cordite. We did this by setting the bags of cordite out in a long line down the middle of a dirt road, each bag touching the next one. Then we went up and lit it. The first time, going up and touching a match to cordite seems like suicide but in fact, it wouldn't explode and was [B]very[/B] hard to get started. Once it did start though, it burned with an intense heat for a long time. We actually used small amounts of cordite sometimes for BBQ lighter to start our campfires.
A man-carried flamethrower just doesn't last long enough to get hot enough to set the TNT off but a vehicle mounted flamer carries a lot more fuel and so can do the job. Onc ethe heat reaches a certain point :D
The disadvantage of flamethrowers is that it creates a hex that will cause you suppression if you end up stopping in it. This will happen with a flametank if the next hex also has mines in it.
An advantage/disadvantage is that the fire also create impenetrable smoke. ;)
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