Quote:
Originally Posted by Panther Al
Heavy losses? While a number of tanks was hit with at weapons (around 50), only 10 crew was killed: and of those 50, only 2 was total losses: the rest was repaired and returned to service.
|
Considering that the IDF believed the Merkava IV to be pretty much invulnerable to modern ATGM systems, then yes. Considering that the IDF was engaging an unconventional force without access to its own MBTs, then yes also. Merkava losses in the 2006 Lebanon incursion came as quite a shock to the IDF. By all subjective measures, the IDF considered their MBT losses to be rather heavy. To the U.S. perhaps, 50 tanks temporarily disabled and 10 crew killed would be small peanuts but to a smaller nation like Israel, those numbers are significant, especially considered the time and money they've invested in both tank building and crew training.