Quote:
Originally Posted by kalos72
So I was reading the Gateway module and realized that the defence of the ship was all with HMG's and a PIVAD and they made reference to the 40MM Oerikens they encountered in Nigeria.
Wouldn't a shoulder fired TOW or similar missile become a very good defensive option at that point?
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TOWs can be fired from a tripod or vehicle mount, but not from shoulder. The TOW-I can't be fired over water as the guide-wires are uninsulated. It came as a nasty disappointment to the Israeli army attempting to engage enemy armor across bodies of water when the guidance lines would dip into the water and the missiles would immediately fail to guide.
TOW-II and variants later had insulated wires to avoid this problem.
As long as the target can set off the warhead, the missile can be used against it. TOWs were used against Uday and Qusay's last stronghold; the Israelis use pure-HE derivative warheads (versus shaped-charge anti-armor rounds) against buildings all the time. I'd say you could definitely use them against a boat or ship.