But that was no longer enough to defeat weapons like high-explosive antitank (HEAT) rounds, first deployed by infantry in World War II (to varying degrees of effect), or explosively formed penetrators (EFPs).
Instead, infantry units should begin conceptualizing, refining, and training new tactics, techniques, and procedures.įor tanks, in the early stages of this arms race, developing thicker armor was the simple way to protect against new weapons. As tanks with new capabilities are fielded, infantry forces will have to respond, and cannot wait for a new generation of capabilities to provide battlefield solutions. This weapon allows a single soldier to target and destroy even the most heavily armored main battle tank with an almost guaranteed kill rate, at great range and with minimal risk.īut infantry’s advantage isn’t permanent. The greatest of these capabilities are fire-and-forget, guided, top-attack missiles-the premier model being the American-made Javelin. In recent years, the balance rested firmly on the side of well-trained infantry with both advanced guided missiles and unguided rockets. Improvements in antitank weapons led to armor better able to withstand them and vice versa, with pendulum swings marking the temporary advantage of one or the other. I would rather be the hammer than the anvil.Įver since modern tanks’ first appearance on the twentieth-century battlefield, infantry forces and their armored counterparts have been engaged in a sustained arms race with one another.
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