746
8 Modern Weapons: Possibilities and Limitations
up, and its speed increases with the temperature difference. And this is considering
that the human height is only 1.5–1.8 m.
Isothermy: air and ground have the same temperature. In this case, there is almost
no vertical movement. This mode is the best for CA. At least vertical behavior of
CA becomes predictable.
Inversion occurs when the ground is colder than the air. The ground layer of air
cools down, becomes heavy and stays close to the ground. It is usually good for AC,
since the AC cloud stays near the ground. At the same time, it is fairly bad, since the
heavy air floats down, leaving the elevated places free. Each of us can observe this
early in the morning, when the fog drifts above the ground and water. This happens
when the air near the ground cools so much that it condenses into fog. CA are also
exposed to condensation. Of course, if the enemy troops in the trenches and dugouts,
then they are most susceptible to the action of chemical agents. But it only requires
taking a higher ground to make CA useless against these soldiers.
We should note here that the state of the air largely depends on the time of the
year and the day and even on whether the sun shines (heats the ground) or is covered
with clouds; this state can very quickly change from convection to inversion.
Application of any weapon is not the goal of the combat. A weapon is only
a means of affecting the enemy for the purpose of achieving victory (success).
Success in combat is achieved by very precisely spatially and temporally coordinated
actions of units and formations using various most suitable types of weapons and
ammunition (this is a quote from the Combat Charter of the Soviet Army). The target
here is not to destroy as many enemy troops as possible, but to force the enemy to
act as the attacker wants (leave the specific location, cease resistance, withdraw from
war, etc.).
This leads to a paradox: chemical weapons cannot be used at the time and place
needed by the commander to achieve success in the battle. Therefore, they require
the commander to adjust to them and not vice versa (as is the case with any weapons).
In conclusion, we will try to formulate the main disadvantages of this type of
weapon from the practical point of view of a logistics officer responsible for combat
service support.
First of all, these are just chemical agents, not weapons. Their use still requires the
same air bombs, spraying devices, aerosol generators, sticks, etc., as well as planes,
artillery weapons and soldiers, i.e., regular weapons and ammunition (with chemical
charges). By allocating significant firepower for the use of chemical weapons, the
commander is forced to limit fire strikes with conventional shells, bombs, missiles,
etc. significantly, i.e., significantly reduce the regular firepower of his unit. Moreover, chemical agents can only be used under favorable weather conditions. These
conditions can remain non-manifested within the required period of time at all.
The reader can say that weather conditions also influence aviation, artillery, and
tanks. They do, of course, but their influence is much greater on chemical weapons.
The commanders are forced to postpone the beginning of the advance due to bad
weather and inability to use aviation; however, such delays do not exceed several
hours or days. Moreover, it is possible to plan military operations taking into account
the time of the year as well as general weather conditions usually found in the specific
8 Modern Weapons: Possibilities and Limitations
up, and its speed increases with the temperature difference. And this is considering
that the human height is only 1.5–1.8 m.
Isothermy: air and ground have the same temperature. In this case, there is almost
no vertical movement. This mode is the best for CA. At least vertical behavior of
CA becomes predictable.
Inversion occurs when the ground is colder than the air. The ground layer of air
cools down, becomes heavy and stays close to the ground. It is usually good for AC,
since the AC cloud stays near the ground. At the same time, it is fairly bad, since the
heavy air floats down, leaving the elevated places free. Each of us can observe this
early in the morning, when the fog drifts above the ground and water. This happens
when the air near the ground cools so much that it condenses into fog. CA are also
exposed to condensation. Of course, if the enemy troops in the trenches and dugouts,
then they are most susceptible to the action of chemical agents. But it only requires
taking a higher ground to make CA useless against these soldiers.
We should note here that the state of the air largely depends on the time of the
year and the day and even on whether the sun shines (heats the ground) or is covered
with clouds; this state can very quickly change from convection to inversion.
Application of any weapon is not the goal of the combat. A weapon is only
a means of affecting the enemy for the purpose of achieving victory (success).
Success in combat is achieved by very precisely spatially and temporally coordinated
actions of units and formations using various most suitable types of weapons and
ammunition (this is a quote from the Combat Charter of the Soviet Army). The target
here is not to destroy as many enemy troops as possible, but to force the enemy to
act as the attacker wants (leave the specific location, cease resistance, withdraw from
war, etc.).
This leads to a paradox: chemical weapons cannot be used at the time and place
needed by the commander to achieve success in the battle. Therefore, they require
the commander to adjust to them and not vice versa (as is the case with any weapons).
In conclusion, we will try to formulate the main disadvantages of this type of
weapon from the practical point of view of a logistics officer responsible for combat
service support.
First of all, these are just chemical agents, not weapons. Their use still requires the
same air bombs, spraying devices, aerosol generators, sticks, etc., as well as planes,
artillery weapons and soldiers, i.e., regular weapons and ammunition (with chemical
charges). By allocating significant firepower for the use of chemical weapons, the
commander is forced to limit fire strikes with conventional shells, bombs, missiles,
etc. significantly, i.e., significantly reduce the regular firepower of his unit. Moreover, chemical agents can only be used under favorable weather conditions. These
conditions can remain non-manifested within the required period of time at all.
The reader can say that weather conditions also influence aviation, artillery, and
tanks. They do, of course, but their influence is much greater on chemical weapons.
The commanders are forced to postpone the beginning of the advance due to bad
weather and inability to use aviation; however, such delays do not exceed several
hours or days. Moreover, it is possible to plan military operations taking into account
the time of the year as well as general weather conditions usually found in the specific