Quote:
Originally Posted by Imp
May I suggest watching some video of it working the chances of not getting a hit are remote if it lands near the target slow mo shows target vanish in a cloud of explosions.
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True, but do the math. Most spectacular videos are CBU-87/B, typically covering an elipse of 200*400 meters. That is some 62831 square meters, ie in average (I expect more bomblets would land towards the center, less ont he edges) 311 sq meters per bomblet. To kill a tank you need a direct hit - either on combat compartment or the engine - and under a good angle. Anyway, let's assume say a tank of 4 m x 7 m - that's just 28 square meters, and even there the vulnerable area is smaller. That'd mean that even tank in the middle of impact zone has some chance, though it would likely have crew suppressed as hell and will have all antennae etc. chopped off by splinters.
The cloud of dust from bomblet explosions for sure looks awesome and it's an effective weapon, but AFAIK heavy ordnance (bombs, mavericks, 155mm delay fused shells etc) is a preferred choice against armored targets, with ICM being used more for "soft" targets where you do not need a direct hit, a splinter shower will do.