Quote:
Originally Posted by Var
While I know that the US military uses RHA, was it MIL-A-46100 currently, I thought that it had been phased out by the newer, more effective armors which did not restrict movement as much as the RHA. Even if it is a common use, that does not mean it is good or the best.
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The main RHA types in American use are MIL-A-46100 and MIL-A-12560 - brand new vehicles are still constructed with them. That it's still commonly employed in light vehicles should be sufficient to dispell any suggestions that it somehow restricts movement; at least moreso than most other alternatives. For all sorts of reasons, it usually isn't desirable to put the much more advanced composite armor (although new is a very relative term) into lighter combat vehicles.
There are a few related technology myths to note when it comes to the question of newer vs. older (I'm cribbing shamelessly from another site):
- Newer technologies are always superior to older technologies in every aspect.
- Older technologies are made obsolete by newer technologies, and they eventually become useless.
- No implementation of an older technology, no matter how clever or refined, will ever equal any implementation of a newer technology.
None of these myths are true. In our case, Aluminum armor is newer than RHA, but its drawbacks mean that it's unsuited for more military applications.