Combat Countdown (2012) s01e03 Episode Script
The Indestructibles
1 narrator: when it comes to military hardware, tough is what keeps you alive.
[ explosion .]
man: i.
e.
d.
i.
e.
d.
having a survivable vehicle is critical.
narrator: keeping men in the front is what wins wars.
it makes you a whole different force.
narrator: we're counting down the top 10 toughest war machines across every class of weapon system, from the advanced bomb suit to the legendary ak assault rifles and the cutting-edge m1 assault breacher, to find the most indestructible hardware on the planet.
CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS English Sbutitles Collected and Modified By: in battle, the victory that really counts is staying alive.
you want to protect the most important part of battlefield, and that is your well-trained soldiers.
narrator: their lives depend on the toughness of their vehicle.
these vehicles give soldiers confidence.
let's go! let's go! let's go! [ laughs .]
yeah.
if you can deliver them safely to the battlefield, get them through the fight, you've won.
narrator: with the help of military experts, we're going to examine the toughest gear on the planet.
each machine will be assessed on a balance of service record, versatility, design ingenuity, and rank within their class to determine our definitive top 10.
coming in at number 10, the u.
s.
army's bomb-proof, all-terrain vehicle the oshkosh mine-resistant, ambush-protected m-atv.
origin -- u.
s.
a.
cost -- $625,000.
weight -- 16 tons.
length -- 19 feet.
the deadly roadside bombs known as i.
e.
d.
s are the number-one killers for soldiers in afghanistan.
improvised explosive device is a versatile weapon, and in the hands of a thinking, clever enemy, it can be quite lethal.
narrator: to face this threat, the u.
s.
army deploys oshkosh's latest mraps.
hickey: the mrap is specifically designed to protect small groups of soldiers from the effects of improvised explosive devices.
it's a very well-protected vehicle.
man: it's armored, it's mine-resistant, it's pretty much explosion-proof.
narrator: here at fort bliss, texas, the men of 1st infantry division are getting ready to test their m-atvs against the taliban on the roads of helmand province, afghanistan.
[ engine turns over .]
let's go! let's go! let's go! let's go! [ laughs .]
yeah.
narrator: the m-atv's first layer of defense is 17 inches of empty space.
the high-ground clearance of the tak-4 independent suspension enables crews to stay off potentially dangerous roads and plays a key role in keeping the soldiers alive.
hazell: relatively high off the ground -- what that means is that it will provide you a level of protection against a buried explosive.
narrator: that critical distance combines with the shaping of the vehicle's hull to make the m-atv the ultimate bomb-proof vehicle.
this vehicle consists of a v-shaped body.
it's been manufactured to absorb blasts better.
so when you take a blast from the bottom, it'll shoot out.
a lot of the energy from the blast is diverted outwards rather than upwards.
narrator: the m-atv's highly classified hull is designed to be blast-proof against anything up to and including anti-tank mines.
and even if it gets hit by a massive blast, it'll keep the crew alive.
one of the things that they'd been able to do is to separate seat structures from the floor.
so, if there's a mine blast underneath the vehicle, then the shock of the explosion isn't transmitted to the individual that sat in the seat.
hickey: these vehicles give small teams of soldiers confidence as well as mobility.
man: i trust this vehicle with my life.
i honestly wouldn't prefer to be in anything else.
[ gunfire in distance .]
narrator: mraps have proved their worth in iraq with roadside-bomb fatalities dropping dramatically.
but roadside bombs aren't the only threat this mrap has to counter.
[ gunfire, indistinct shouting .]
the m-atv also has to be indestructible in a fire fight.
we have armored glass, which you may think is an average window, but it really isn't 'cause, you can see right here, this is the thickness of the armored glass.
hazell: that armored glass would be able to defeat high-velocity rifle rounds, fired from ak-47, for example.
[ gunfire .]
narrator: its layered defensive features make the oshkosh m-atv tough to beat.
the oshkosh's service record only goes back three years.
versatility is average.
the host of defensive features scores high for design ingenuity.
the oshkosh mrap is among the best in a crowded field.
overall, the mrap earns enough for the number-10 position.
at number 9, the most awesome personal protection available on the modern battlefield the advanced bomb suit.
origin -- canada.
cost -- $30,000.
weight -- 76 pounds.
length -- variable.
for troops on the ground in afghanistan, i.
e.
d.
s turn every house, every street, every path into a potential threat.
they can be buried, they can be put on the surface, they can be placed on top of walls, they can be placed on the sides of telephone poles.
[ indistinct conversations .]
narrator: to combat the threat [ indistinct shouting .]
the u.
s.
army's explosive ordnance disposal specialists depend on the advanced bomb suit.
it was designed in response to the emerging threat of i.
e.
d.
s.
narrator: the advanced bomb suit is a super-sophisticated combination of kevlar and nomex fabrics combined with hard plastics to protect against blast, impact, heat, and fragmentation damage.
hazell: they would be using materials such as ceramic, composite layers to provide protection to the occupant.
narrator: the men of 71st ordnance group are honing their skills before heading into theater to continue the fight against the i.
e.
d.
threat.
sergeant lindsey, 1st i.
d.
[ speaking indistinctly .]
we are reaching patrol, and one of my guys said he'd seen a -- he thought he'd seen an i.
e.
d.
, so we called you to make sure you guys can get rid of it for us.
okay.
roger.
you said it's in the middle of the culvert, correct? yeah, it's in the middle of the culvert.
all right.
roger.
we're gonna be taking care of this.
[ man breathing deeply .]
however hot a war zone gets, the suit's built-in cooling system, powered by six rechargeable batteries, can keep e.
o.
d.
operators cool for up to two and a half hours.
if an operator misjudges the threat the suit can easily defeat the fragmentation from hand grenades and even gives him a chance of surviving an artillery blast.
the suit's flexible joints permit a wide range of movement, but the 76-pound weight still means operators move slowly.
this i.
e.
d.
is a converted 155-millimeter artillery shell.
if it goes up, it takes out the roadside and everything on it.
the advanced bomb suit's incredible protective qualities have saved the lives of some of the most mission-critical personnel in the u.
s.
military.
no other personal armor has to withstand the same level of threat as the advanced bomb suit.
the advanced bomb suit's service record has been superb in iraq and afghanistan.
the suit is specialist rather than versatile.
the design ingenuity scores respectably.
the bomb suit is unrivaled in its class.
overall, the bomb suit earns enough for the number-9 position.
coming up, hardware that's tougher than tough.
it will do what you want to do, which is put heavy lead downrange.
narrator: at number 8 in "the indestructibles" countdown, the jet fighter with the most perfect combat record of all time -- the f-15 eagle.
origin -- u.
s.
a.
cost -- $54 million.
weight -- 19 tons.
length -- 64 feet.
in aerial combat, piling on tons of armor plate just won't fly, so indestructibility comes down to not getting hit.
and in nearly 40 years of combat service, the f-15 has never been shot down in real air-to-air combat.
f-15 has got to go down in history as one of the greatest fighters ever created.
narrator: the awesome mach-2.
5 war plane started life in 1972, tasked with keeping the skies clear of soviet aircraft.
top prop with an expedite scramble.
authentication time is 19:06.
[ alarm blaring .]
scramble.
nothing the russian war machine built could touch the eagle.
when you see one of those things streaking by, and your hair is just blown away, the sound is amazing.
[ engine roars .]
narrator: engines producing nearly 60,000 pounds of thrust and an airframe capable of sustaining 9-g turns meant that it could simply outturn and outburn any enemy aircraft.
in aerial combat over bosnia, iraq, and afghanistan, the f-15 proved itself time and again -- no losses.
starting in 1984, the f-15 underwent a $1.
5-billion makeover.
with the addition of a seat for a weapons officer, or a "wizzo," the indestructible fighter became one of the most deadly bombers in the american arsenal.
the f-15e strike eagle was born.
here at r.
a.
f.
lakenheath, the men and women of the 48th fighter wing are getting ready to take it into combat.
man: every day we go to work, we strap on a parachute, we get in a jet with 60,000 pounds of thrust.
man #2: i hate the cliché of riding a roller coaster, but it's the biggest adrenaline rush you could possibly imagine.
it's just an awesome experience every day.
the f-15e strike eagle can perform high-speed takeoffs loaded with 11 tons of bombs and missiles.
that's like flying with six cars underneath.
that's the best part about the f-15e strike eagle is its weapons carriage capability.
the number of weapons that we can carry and the variety of weapons is unmatched against any strike-fighter platform or bomber platform in the u.
s.
air force or u.
s.
military.
it can climb to an altitude of 60,000 feet, more than twice the height of mount everest, in just four minutes.
then it can get to the target at 2? times the speed of sound to do serious damage.
man #1: chances are, no matter what the target is, we've got a weapon on board that'll be able to destroy it.
narrator: the ability to strike hard without letting the enemy ever lay a glove on it wins the f-15 its place in "the indestructible" countdown.
the service record is unrivaled.
the eagle does two jobs to a high standard.
the design ingenuity is average.
it's a leader in its class.
overall, the f-15 does enough to earn the number-8 position.
at number 7, the toughest gun ever made the ak assault rifle.
origin -- soviet union.
cost -- $30.
weight -- 10 pounds.
length -- 35 inches.
the ak assault rifle made its mark on the 20th century because it's indestructible.
kalashnikovs have had more influence on personal firearms throughout the world than any other single weapon system.
narrator: the main reason the 10-pound weapon spread all over the world was its toughness.
adams: kalashnikov's greatest achievement, in his own eyes, was finding one of his old weapons that had been in a pond for 20 years, cleaning it once, and finding that it fired the moment he pressed the trigger.
narrator: the ability to fire a storm of 7.
62-millimeter bullets under any conditions make it the perfect weapon for any battlefield.
it feels like a piece of junk when you pick it up.
it rattles.
it's probably 40 years old.
but it will do what you want to do, which is put heavy lead downrange.
i can throw it in the mud.
i can run it over with a vehicle.
i could throw it off a building.
it's gonna keep working.
narrator: it'll take whatever you throw at it and keep spewing bullets at 2,345 feet per second.
the ak-47 made its debut for the soviet army in the late '40s.
and the ruggedness of the design meant it spread like wildfire around the globe.
every bit is made from pressed steel, and that can be replicated anywhere in the world.
narrator: the key to the weapon's indestructibility was its simplicity.
any problems that do arise are easily fixed.
when it's taken apart, it's blindingly obvious how to put it back together again.
you pull the trigger, and it works.
[ speaking foreign language .]
narrator: the ak was designed to give full-auto firepower at 600 rounds per minute to mass peasant armies.
hickey: they're not particularly skilled.
most of them lack discipline.
they don't know how to take care of their equipment.
narrator: for these guys, toughness counted for more than anything else in a weapon.
the ak-47 can survive that sort of handling and still work on the battlefield.
find me another arms manufacturer that will proudly say, "my gun is good for 40 years.
" narrator: the ak's service record is unbeatable.
poor long-range performance means it scores low for versatility.
the simplicity sees its score for design ingenuity.
there is still no tougher automatic weapon in existence.
overall, the ak earns enough for the number-7 position.
still to come, the toughest hardware on the modern battlefield.
it's definitely the best main battle tank all over the world.
narrator: counting down the toughest military hardware on the planet, at number 6 -- the main battle tank that's the number-one choice for more first-world armies than any of its rivals -- the leopard 2.
origin -- germany.
cost -- $8 million.
weight -- 62 tons.
length -- 36 feet.
you want indestructible? think tank.
you want the toughest? well, the world's armed forces took a vote, and they voted leopard 2.
it's definitely the best main battle tank all over the world.
15 nations in europe and elsewhere have bought the leopard 2, and that's surely a tribute to its versatility as a tank.
narrator: it's the world's most popular main battle tank because of its indestructibility.
what makes the leopard tough? armor -- a high-tech, multi-layered sandwich of steel and composites.
like most main battle tanks, the leopard 2 is made with a steel chassis.
but for additional protection, they will be using materials such as ceramic and composite layers to provide enhance levels of protection against armor-piercing-type rounds.
narrator: and it's not just armor that makes leopard 2 indestructible.
its incredible all-terrain agility and low profile make the big cat a hard target.
a very quick tank, it's one of the lighter of the modern main battle tanks compared to the m1 abrams and the challenger 2.
narrator: the mtu 883 supercharged v-12 diesel engine takes it to more than 45 miles per hour, even on rough ground.
what makes the leopard 2 even harder to kill is that if you're trying to take one out, it's probably going to kill you first.
adams: the leopard 2 is a deadly adversary, and that's because of its main armament -- a 120-millimeter, smoothbore weapon.
narrator: the leopard's 120-millimeter, rheinmetall, smoothbore gun is quite simply the most awesome weapon ever created for a tank -- so awesome, the u.
s.
army bought it for the m1 abrams instead of trying to make their own gun.
the accuracy is without any comparison, so that's the reason why most nations actually try to buy this gun.
narrator: the chrome-lined cannon can fire 20-pound shells accurately to distances up to four miles.
adams: it's not only used by a lot of armies, it's survived and has been combat-tested and proven.
narrator: the leopard's armor, alone, makes it tough, but its combination of mobility and killing power takes its indestructibility to the next level.
the leopard's service record over 30 years is respectable.
versatility is above average because of the range of roles it can undertake.
the design is ingenious, but some of the technology is borrowed.
leopard 2 is one of the world's top main battle tanks.
overall, leopard earns enough for the number-6 position.
at number 5, the toughest troop carrier the world has ever seen the namer.
origin -- israel.
cost -- $3 million.
weight -- 60 tons.
length -- 24 feet.
the makers claim that the $3-million namer is the world's toughest armored vehicle.
when israel builds an armored vehicle, they start with the crew.
it's designed with the survivability of those inside, first and foremost.
narrator: they're surrounded by a high-tech armor sandwich of metal, ceramic, and reactive armor, but the precise blend is highly classified.
it incorporates the very latest of armor technology, and the israelis have always been at the forefront of this.
narrator: but the real secret of the 60-ton namer's toughness is much less high-tech.
namer isn't just built like a tank it is a tank.
it's built on the chassis of the fearsome merkava iv main battle tanks.
but instead of a vulnerable turret, it has extra-advanced modular armor.
modular armor enables us to absorb a lot of threat with much less weight.
narrator: the modular system uses advanced aluminum titanium alloys that weigh less than half of equivalent steel armor.
but namer's protection still makes it weigh as much as three normal armored personnel carriers or 30 station wagons.
this armor keeps our soldiers alive.
narrator: in terms of surviving a battle, only one thing beats being able to take a hit -- not getting hit.
and while the namer looks like a slow, heavy bruiser you would probably think that it will move very slow and it will be like a turtle.
narrator: appearances can be deceptive.
with its 1,200 horsepower turbocharged diesel engine, the namer can move out of trouble at 40 miles per hour cross-country.
and to make the apc even harder to kill the crew of three can adjust the fuel mix to pump a 200-foot-wide smoke screen out of the exhaust, providing instant cover.
the most vulnerable point on any armored vehicle is usually the tracks.
break one metal pin, and you can immobilize a 70-ton main battle tank.
that won't work on a namer.
the track links are made from overlapping s-shaped sections of hardened steel so that even if a connecting pin breaks, they naturally hold together.
it's an all-around unprecedented level of protection for an apc.
the namer has already proved itself in combat.
versatility is the namer's weak point.
the range of innovative features scores for design ingenuity.
namer is a leader in its class.
overall, the namer does enough for the number-5 position.
still to come, the hardware that's harder to kill than anything else on the planet.
30-millimeter shells -- it'll destroy anything.
narrator: coming in at number 4 in our countdown of "the indestructibles," the most heavily-armored helicopter gunship ever built -- the mil mi-24 gunship, known to nato as the "hind.
" origin -- soviet union.
cost -- estimated $8 million.
weight -- 12 tons.
length -- 57 feet.
when the hind appeared in 1972, the design was totally revolutionary.
the mi-24 was probably the most capable helicopter gunship of its time.
there was not anything as survivable and lethal as the hind d until the advent of the apache.
normally, when you build a helicopter, you tend to try and make it as light and agile as possible.
but in soviet russia, they did things a little bit differently.
narrator: the russians piled on armored plate, bringing the hind's mass to 12 tons, three times the mass of contemporary western combat helicopters.
this is the classic soviet flying gunship.
it's rugged.
it's huge by helicopter standards.
narrator: this flying tank is so hard to kill, the afghan fighters who faced it on the battlefield christened it "satan's chariot.
" the mi-24 is an ugly, brutish beast.
if death could fly, it would look like this.
narrator: the hovering heavyweight came into service in the early 1970s, but no helicopter built before or since has ever carried as much armor into the skies.
the hind's fuselage is sheathed in 5 millimeters of hardened-steel armor plate, capable of resisting cannon shells up to 12.
7-millimeter caliber.
the mi-24 has two crew -- pilot and weapon systems operator.
both are shielded by 20-millimeter-thick armored glass, comprised of five layers of alternating plastic and tempered glass.
to shift the armored monster's 12-ton bulk, they fire up the chopper's two 2,200-horsepower gas turbine engines.
[ radio chatter .]
the 56-foot-long rotor blades slice into the air, pushing the mi-24 up to speeds around 200 miles per hour.
it was the mi-24's toughness that enabled it to ignore enemy fire while it poured out the pain.
for tough targets like tanks or bunkers, the gunner can call upon stern, radio-guided, armor-piercing missiles or ub-32 rocket pods, capable of launching lethal ripple salvos.
the mi-24 had a very lethal suite of laser-guided weapons, rockets, carried a tremendous amount of firepower.
narrator: for inventing the concept of the modern-armored gunship, the mi-24 has to feature in "the indestructible" countdown.
the service record over four decades is impressive.
the hind scores for versatility with its range of weaponry.
the design is totally revolutionary.
it was a class leader in its day, but has been surpassed.
overall, the mi-24 earns enough for the number-4 spot.
at number 3, the toughest ground-attack plane ever built the a-10 thunderbolt ii.
origin -- u.
s.
a.
cost -- $12 million.
weight -- 26 tons.
length -- 53 feet.
the a-10 is known to its pilots as the "warthog.
" a-10 warthog is called that for a reason.
it's just a mean, nasty, snub-nosed tank of a plane.
narrator: it's ugly to make it tough.
the engines are shielded, placed high at the back so they get protection from the rest of the airframe.
the tails are armored.
the fuel tanks are protected.
they're self-sealing.
it's a very hardy aircraft, so you can take a tremendous amount of damage and still complete your mission and still go home.
narrator: the most incredible protection is reserved for the most vital component -- the pilot.
it has a titanium tub that the pilot sits in so he's protected.
narrator: this inch-thick layer of the rare metal is simply impenetrable to almost all ground-based guns that could possibly hit a moving plane.
so, why does the a-10 have to be so damn tough? because it's doing the toughest job in the air force.
the a-10 is designed to do one thing and one thing only -- ground attack.
narrator: to strike with maximum precision, the warthog flies low and slow over the battlefield, picking its targets, so it's going to take hits.
it's meant to go slow, low, and be able to take all sorts of infantry fire and survive right through it, and it absolutely can.
narrator: the warthog's incredible toughness means it can stay in the fight and unleash its own devastating arsenal.
this is a gbu-12 500-pound, laser-guided bomb.
it's used against buildings or bunkers, and it's accurate enough to be delivered through your living-room window.
narrator: but the big hitter is the gau-8 30-millimeter, rotary gatling cannon, simply the most powerful forward-facing gun ever placed on an aircraft.
incredibly capable gun -- airborne artillery.
reed: normally, when you build an attack aircraft, you build the plane first and then the gun to go on it, but they did things in reverse with this.
they got the gun first and then designed the aircraft around it.
its 30-millimeter shells will shower the target and destroy anything.
narrator: in the 1991 gulf war, the deadly aerial arsenal was unleashed in combat for the first time.
the results were devastating -- more than 900 tanks and 2,000 military vehicles destroyed.
a-10 is absolutely a heavyweight, tank-busting aircraft.
it can destroy anything from the air -- tanks, infantry, buildings, you name it.
narrator: target locked.
one 4-second burst sends 400 rounds of depleted uranium and incendiary ammunition ripping through the air.
capps: you hear that gatling gun firing depleted-uranium rounds -- it is scary because it just pounds the earth.
you feel the ground move.
narrator: target annihilated.
i wouldn't trade flying the a-10 for anything in the world.
anytime we get to employ weapons is a real thrill.
narrator: with this firepower, the warthog is as deadly as it is tough.
the a-10's service record is impressive.
versatility is high because of the range of targets it can attack.
the design is perfectly optimized for toughness.
it's definitely a class leader.
overall, the a-10 earns enough for the number-3 position.
still to come, the top two toughest war machines on the battlefield.
there's nothing like it.
there's no way to explain it until you've actually done it.
narrator: coming in at number 2 in "the indestructibles" countdown, the toughest, most sophisticated tank ever to come out of the former soviet union the t-90.
origin -- russia.
cost -- $4 million.
weight -- 47 tons.
length -- 31 feet.
from the ground up, russia's $4 million t-90 main battle tank is built to go up against the best in the west, and toughness is the number-one priority.
well, the t-90's probably one of the toughest tanks on the battlefield.
to be able to kill a tank with this level of protection is actually quite difficult.
narrator: the 47-ton tank's three-level approach to battlefield survival is uniquely russian.
the first level is the steel-composite armor, surrounding the entire 23-foot length of the hull.
what stands out for the t-90 is its armor.
narrator: the second level is a layer of explosive reactive armor, known as "kontakt-5," hidden beneath the outer steel plates of the turret.
it employs the kontakt-5 explosive reactive armor, and that's what give the turret its characteristic clam-looking shape.
narrator: the concealed layer of explosives detonates immediately on response to impact, deflecting incoming projectiles, reducing their penetrating power.
the final layer is the shtora-1 electro-optical active protection system.
around the turret, four laser sensors warn the crew when they have been targeted by laser-guided weapons.
two infrared lights, either side of the main gun, emit pulses of radiation to jam i.
r.
-guided missiles and a computer control system will automatically trigger the turret grenade launchers in response to a threat, providing a 70-yard smoke screen in just 3 seconds.
but the t-90's tough doesn't stop there.
at just 12 feet wide and 7 feet high, it's built small to be a hard target.
and the third-generation main battle tank is built rugged to survive operations across some of the toughest terrain on the planet.
the t-90's dazzling array of defensive features is unmatched by any tank in the west.
the t-90 has not yet seen extensive combat service.
its ability to handle a range of combat scenarios means it scores for versatility.
the innovative features score high for ingenuity.
the t-90 is one of the toughest tanks in the world.
overall, the russian hardcase's scores earn it the number-2 position.
tough can mean bulletproof, bomb-proof, or the ability to withstand hostile environments.
but one thing is certain -- tough keeps you alive.
any battle, any fight, we can engage the enemy.
narrator: in terms of all-around toughness, the combination of outstanding armor protection and exceptional combat utility puts one machine ahead of the pack the u.
s.
marine's assault breacher vehicle.
origin -- u.
s.
a.
cost -- $5 million.
weight -- 67 tons.
length -- 40 feet.
the assault breacher is an unholy hybrid of tank and bulldozer.
nothing can stand in its path.
it's heavy.
it's sturdy.
it moves with great agility.
narrator: in 2011, the assault breachers of the marine's 3rd combat engineer battalion led operation eastern storm, a major offensive against the taliban.
the greatest threat came from i.
e.
d.
s buried in the road.
hickey: many of these i.
e.
d.
s can be used for a variety of purposes.
they can be used as blocking obstacles, offensive striking weapons.
they can be designed to destroy or disable.
narrator: the breacher combats the threat with its four-feet-high, steel digging plow.
you got this humongous plow in the front.
we're able to plow up -- we plow up bombs.
narrator: the breacher just keeps plowing through the dirt to set off or disable any mines or bombs.
hubbard: if you set it deep, it goes pretty deep to pull up any command wire.
it finds all the i.
e.
d.
s.
narrator: if they go off, it's built to withstand the blast.
the americans are very good at producing levels of protection which you wouldn't see elsewhere.
gunsolus: honestly, having this vehicle makes me feel extremely safe in afghanistan.
you know, you don't really worry too much because you're driving around in 70 tons of steel around you, and hitting an i.
e.
d.
is kind of like, you know, driving over a bump in a car.
narrator: the breacher is that tough.
hazell: certain variants of the m1 have very dense materials in the turrets, and that provides a very good level of protection.
narrator: the layered armor is made from materials of different densities to protect against every conceivable threat the breacher could encounter.
it has the power to knock down walls.
.
knock down compounds knock down anything that comes into our way.
narrator: wood, dirt, or even concrete.
breacher's 67-ton bulk, powered by a 1,500-horsepower gas turbine engine, will smash it to pieces it's just a beast.
it's massive.
it's got jet engine turbines in the back.
you can literally cook your lunch or yourself if you stand behind it.
narrator: leaving the troops a clear path to wherever they need to go.
it's fast.
it's extremely rugged.
it has very good armor protection.
narrator: when the breacher encounters a serious threat, it deploys the m58 mine-clearing line charge.
a rocket-propelled projectile drags a 350-foot-long line packed with c-4 plastic explosive which detonates any bombs in its path.
well, there's nothing like it.
there's no way to explain it until you've actually done it.
you're making a big impact over there, and it means a lot to you.
it brings a great deal of satisfaction.
narrator: the breacher is built to be a battering ram right at the front of the fight, but its highly classified armor cocktail has, so far, rendered it invulnerable to all attacks.
not one has been lost in combat.
no matter what you fire at it, it's going to keep on coming, and that's why it's number 1.
the breacher has already made a big impression in combat.
versatility is high because of its ability to affect every aspect of the battlefield.
top marks for engineering that has never been equaled.
the best in its class by a long way.
despite some strong competition, ultimately, there's no contest.
there's nothing more critical than toughness on the battlefield.
and in this countdown, we've analyzed the toughest war machines on the planet.
man: i trust this vehicle with my life.
narrator: from number 10 all the way down to number 2, there are strong contenders.
but there's no doubt about the winner -- the mighty assault breacher.
[ explosion .]
man: i.
e.
d.
i.
e.
d.
having a survivable vehicle is critical.
narrator: keeping men in the front is what wins wars.
it makes you a whole different force.
narrator: we're counting down the top 10 toughest war machines across every class of weapon system, from the advanced bomb suit to the legendary ak assault rifles and the cutting-edge m1 assault breacher, to find the most indestructible hardware on the planet.
CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS English Sbutitles Collected and Modified By: in battle, the victory that really counts is staying alive.
you want to protect the most important part of battlefield, and that is your well-trained soldiers.
narrator: their lives depend on the toughness of their vehicle.
these vehicles give soldiers confidence.
let's go! let's go! let's go! [ laughs .]
yeah.
if you can deliver them safely to the battlefield, get them through the fight, you've won.
narrator: with the help of military experts, we're going to examine the toughest gear on the planet.
each machine will be assessed on a balance of service record, versatility, design ingenuity, and rank within their class to determine our definitive top 10.
coming in at number 10, the u.
s.
army's bomb-proof, all-terrain vehicle the oshkosh mine-resistant, ambush-protected m-atv.
origin -- u.
s.
a.
cost -- $625,000.
weight -- 16 tons.
length -- 19 feet.
the deadly roadside bombs known as i.
e.
d.
s are the number-one killers for soldiers in afghanistan.
improvised explosive device is a versatile weapon, and in the hands of a thinking, clever enemy, it can be quite lethal.
narrator: to face this threat, the u.
s.
army deploys oshkosh's latest mraps.
hickey: the mrap is specifically designed to protect small groups of soldiers from the effects of improvised explosive devices.
it's a very well-protected vehicle.
man: it's armored, it's mine-resistant, it's pretty much explosion-proof.
narrator: here at fort bliss, texas, the men of 1st infantry division are getting ready to test their m-atvs against the taliban on the roads of helmand province, afghanistan.
[ engine turns over .]
let's go! let's go! let's go! let's go! [ laughs .]
yeah.
narrator: the m-atv's first layer of defense is 17 inches of empty space.
the high-ground clearance of the tak-4 independent suspension enables crews to stay off potentially dangerous roads and plays a key role in keeping the soldiers alive.
hazell: relatively high off the ground -- what that means is that it will provide you a level of protection against a buried explosive.
narrator: that critical distance combines with the shaping of the vehicle's hull to make the m-atv the ultimate bomb-proof vehicle.
this vehicle consists of a v-shaped body.
it's been manufactured to absorb blasts better.
so when you take a blast from the bottom, it'll shoot out.
a lot of the energy from the blast is diverted outwards rather than upwards.
narrator: the m-atv's highly classified hull is designed to be blast-proof against anything up to and including anti-tank mines.
and even if it gets hit by a massive blast, it'll keep the crew alive.
one of the things that they'd been able to do is to separate seat structures from the floor.
so, if there's a mine blast underneath the vehicle, then the shock of the explosion isn't transmitted to the individual that sat in the seat.
hickey: these vehicles give small teams of soldiers confidence as well as mobility.
man: i trust this vehicle with my life.
i honestly wouldn't prefer to be in anything else.
[ gunfire in distance .]
narrator: mraps have proved their worth in iraq with roadside-bomb fatalities dropping dramatically.
but roadside bombs aren't the only threat this mrap has to counter.
[ gunfire, indistinct shouting .]
the m-atv also has to be indestructible in a fire fight.
we have armored glass, which you may think is an average window, but it really isn't 'cause, you can see right here, this is the thickness of the armored glass.
hazell: that armored glass would be able to defeat high-velocity rifle rounds, fired from ak-47, for example.
[ gunfire .]
narrator: its layered defensive features make the oshkosh m-atv tough to beat.
the oshkosh's service record only goes back three years.
versatility is average.
the host of defensive features scores high for design ingenuity.
the oshkosh mrap is among the best in a crowded field.
overall, the mrap earns enough for the number-10 position.
at number 9, the most awesome personal protection available on the modern battlefield the advanced bomb suit.
origin -- canada.
cost -- $30,000.
weight -- 76 pounds.
length -- variable.
for troops on the ground in afghanistan, i.
e.
d.
s turn every house, every street, every path into a potential threat.
they can be buried, they can be put on the surface, they can be placed on top of walls, they can be placed on the sides of telephone poles.
[ indistinct conversations .]
narrator: to combat the threat [ indistinct shouting .]
the u.
s.
army's explosive ordnance disposal specialists depend on the advanced bomb suit.
it was designed in response to the emerging threat of i.
e.
d.
s.
narrator: the advanced bomb suit is a super-sophisticated combination of kevlar and nomex fabrics combined with hard plastics to protect against blast, impact, heat, and fragmentation damage.
hazell: they would be using materials such as ceramic, composite layers to provide protection to the occupant.
narrator: the men of 71st ordnance group are honing their skills before heading into theater to continue the fight against the i.
e.
d.
threat.
sergeant lindsey, 1st i.
d.
[ speaking indistinctly .]
we are reaching patrol, and one of my guys said he'd seen a -- he thought he'd seen an i.
e.
d.
, so we called you to make sure you guys can get rid of it for us.
okay.
roger.
you said it's in the middle of the culvert, correct? yeah, it's in the middle of the culvert.
all right.
roger.
we're gonna be taking care of this.
[ man breathing deeply .]
however hot a war zone gets, the suit's built-in cooling system, powered by six rechargeable batteries, can keep e.
o.
d.
operators cool for up to two and a half hours.
if an operator misjudges the threat the suit can easily defeat the fragmentation from hand grenades and even gives him a chance of surviving an artillery blast.
the suit's flexible joints permit a wide range of movement, but the 76-pound weight still means operators move slowly.
this i.
e.
d.
is a converted 155-millimeter artillery shell.
if it goes up, it takes out the roadside and everything on it.
the advanced bomb suit's incredible protective qualities have saved the lives of some of the most mission-critical personnel in the u.
s.
military.
no other personal armor has to withstand the same level of threat as the advanced bomb suit.
the advanced bomb suit's service record has been superb in iraq and afghanistan.
the suit is specialist rather than versatile.
the design ingenuity scores respectably.
the bomb suit is unrivaled in its class.
overall, the bomb suit earns enough for the number-9 position.
coming up, hardware that's tougher than tough.
it will do what you want to do, which is put heavy lead downrange.
narrator: at number 8 in "the indestructibles" countdown, the jet fighter with the most perfect combat record of all time -- the f-15 eagle.
origin -- u.
s.
a.
cost -- $54 million.
weight -- 19 tons.
length -- 64 feet.
in aerial combat, piling on tons of armor plate just won't fly, so indestructibility comes down to not getting hit.
and in nearly 40 years of combat service, the f-15 has never been shot down in real air-to-air combat.
f-15 has got to go down in history as one of the greatest fighters ever created.
narrator: the awesome mach-2.
5 war plane started life in 1972, tasked with keeping the skies clear of soviet aircraft.
top prop with an expedite scramble.
authentication time is 19:06.
[ alarm blaring .]
scramble.
nothing the russian war machine built could touch the eagle.
when you see one of those things streaking by, and your hair is just blown away, the sound is amazing.
[ engine roars .]
narrator: engines producing nearly 60,000 pounds of thrust and an airframe capable of sustaining 9-g turns meant that it could simply outturn and outburn any enemy aircraft.
in aerial combat over bosnia, iraq, and afghanistan, the f-15 proved itself time and again -- no losses.
starting in 1984, the f-15 underwent a $1.
5-billion makeover.
with the addition of a seat for a weapons officer, or a "wizzo," the indestructible fighter became one of the most deadly bombers in the american arsenal.
the f-15e strike eagle was born.
here at r.
a.
f.
lakenheath, the men and women of the 48th fighter wing are getting ready to take it into combat.
man: every day we go to work, we strap on a parachute, we get in a jet with 60,000 pounds of thrust.
man #2: i hate the cliché of riding a roller coaster, but it's the biggest adrenaline rush you could possibly imagine.
it's just an awesome experience every day.
the f-15e strike eagle can perform high-speed takeoffs loaded with 11 tons of bombs and missiles.
that's like flying with six cars underneath.
that's the best part about the f-15e strike eagle is its weapons carriage capability.
the number of weapons that we can carry and the variety of weapons is unmatched against any strike-fighter platform or bomber platform in the u.
s.
air force or u.
s.
military.
it can climb to an altitude of 60,000 feet, more than twice the height of mount everest, in just four minutes.
then it can get to the target at 2? times the speed of sound to do serious damage.
man #1: chances are, no matter what the target is, we've got a weapon on board that'll be able to destroy it.
narrator: the ability to strike hard without letting the enemy ever lay a glove on it wins the f-15 its place in "the indestructible" countdown.
the service record is unrivaled.
the eagle does two jobs to a high standard.
the design ingenuity is average.
it's a leader in its class.
overall, the f-15 does enough to earn the number-8 position.
at number 7, the toughest gun ever made the ak assault rifle.
origin -- soviet union.
cost -- $30.
weight -- 10 pounds.
length -- 35 inches.
the ak assault rifle made its mark on the 20th century because it's indestructible.
kalashnikovs have had more influence on personal firearms throughout the world than any other single weapon system.
narrator: the main reason the 10-pound weapon spread all over the world was its toughness.
adams: kalashnikov's greatest achievement, in his own eyes, was finding one of his old weapons that had been in a pond for 20 years, cleaning it once, and finding that it fired the moment he pressed the trigger.
narrator: the ability to fire a storm of 7.
62-millimeter bullets under any conditions make it the perfect weapon for any battlefield.
it feels like a piece of junk when you pick it up.
it rattles.
it's probably 40 years old.
but it will do what you want to do, which is put heavy lead downrange.
i can throw it in the mud.
i can run it over with a vehicle.
i could throw it off a building.
it's gonna keep working.
narrator: it'll take whatever you throw at it and keep spewing bullets at 2,345 feet per second.
the ak-47 made its debut for the soviet army in the late '40s.
and the ruggedness of the design meant it spread like wildfire around the globe.
every bit is made from pressed steel, and that can be replicated anywhere in the world.
narrator: the key to the weapon's indestructibility was its simplicity.
any problems that do arise are easily fixed.
when it's taken apart, it's blindingly obvious how to put it back together again.
you pull the trigger, and it works.
[ speaking foreign language .]
narrator: the ak was designed to give full-auto firepower at 600 rounds per minute to mass peasant armies.
hickey: they're not particularly skilled.
most of them lack discipline.
they don't know how to take care of their equipment.
narrator: for these guys, toughness counted for more than anything else in a weapon.
the ak-47 can survive that sort of handling and still work on the battlefield.
find me another arms manufacturer that will proudly say, "my gun is good for 40 years.
" narrator: the ak's service record is unbeatable.
poor long-range performance means it scores low for versatility.
the simplicity sees its score for design ingenuity.
there is still no tougher automatic weapon in existence.
overall, the ak earns enough for the number-7 position.
still to come, the toughest hardware on the modern battlefield.
it's definitely the best main battle tank all over the world.
narrator: counting down the toughest military hardware on the planet, at number 6 -- the main battle tank that's the number-one choice for more first-world armies than any of its rivals -- the leopard 2.
origin -- germany.
cost -- $8 million.
weight -- 62 tons.
length -- 36 feet.
you want indestructible? think tank.
you want the toughest? well, the world's armed forces took a vote, and they voted leopard 2.
it's definitely the best main battle tank all over the world.
15 nations in europe and elsewhere have bought the leopard 2, and that's surely a tribute to its versatility as a tank.
narrator: it's the world's most popular main battle tank because of its indestructibility.
what makes the leopard tough? armor -- a high-tech, multi-layered sandwich of steel and composites.
like most main battle tanks, the leopard 2 is made with a steel chassis.
but for additional protection, they will be using materials such as ceramic and composite layers to provide enhance levels of protection against armor-piercing-type rounds.
narrator: and it's not just armor that makes leopard 2 indestructible.
its incredible all-terrain agility and low profile make the big cat a hard target.
a very quick tank, it's one of the lighter of the modern main battle tanks compared to the m1 abrams and the challenger 2.
narrator: the mtu 883 supercharged v-12 diesel engine takes it to more than 45 miles per hour, even on rough ground.
what makes the leopard 2 even harder to kill is that if you're trying to take one out, it's probably going to kill you first.
adams: the leopard 2 is a deadly adversary, and that's because of its main armament -- a 120-millimeter, smoothbore weapon.
narrator: the leopard's 120-millimeter, rheinmetall, smoothbore gun is quite simply the most awesome weapon ever created for a tank -- so awesome, the u.
s.
army bought it for the m1 abrams instead of trying to make their own gun.
the accuracy is without any comparison, so that's the reason why most nations actually try to buy this gun.
narrator: the chrome-lined cannon can fire 20-pound shells accurately to distances up to four miles.
adams: it's not only used by a lot of armies, it's survived and has been combat-tested and proven.
narrator: the leopard's armor, alone, makes it tough, but its combination of mobility and killing power takes its indestructibility to the next level.
the leopard's service record over 30 years is respectable.
versatility is above average because of the range of roles it can undertake.
the design is ingenious, but some of the technology is borrowed.
leopard 2 is one of the world's top main battle tanks.
overall, leopard earns enough for the number-6 position.
at number 5, the toughest troop carrier the world has ever seen the namer.
origin -- israel.
cost -- $3 million.
weight -- 60 tons.
length -- 24 feet.
the makers claim that the $3-million namer is the world's toughest armored vehicle.
when israel builds an armored vehicle, they start with the crew.
it's designed with the survivability of those inside, first and foremost.
narrator: they're surrounded by a high-tech armor sandwich of metal, ceramic, and reactive armor, but the precise blend is highly classified.
it incorporates the very latest of armor technology, and the israelis have always been at the forefront of this.
narrator: but the real secret of the 60-ton namer's toughness is much less high-tech.
namer isn't just built like a tank it is a tank.
it's built on the chassis of the fearsome merkava iv main battle tanks.
but instead of a vulnerable turret, it has extra-advanced modular armor.
modular armor enables us to absorb a lot of threat with much less weight.
narrator: the modular system uses advanced aluminum titanium alloys that weigh less than half of equivalent steel armor.
but namer's protection still makes it weigh as much as three normal armored personnel carriers or 30 station wagons.
this armor keeps our soldiers alive.
narrator: in terms of surviving a battle, only one thing beats being able to take a hit -- not getting hit.
and while the namer looks like a slow, heavy bruiser you would probably think that it will move very slow and it will be like a turtle.
narrator: appearances can be deceptive.
with its 1,200 horsepower turbocharged diesel engine, the namer can move out of trouble at 40 miles per hour cross-country.
and to make the apc even harder to kill the crew of three can adjust the fuel mix to pump a 200-foot-wide smoke screen out of the exhaust, providing instant cover.
the most vulnerable point on any armored vehicle is usually the tracks.
break one metal pin, and you can immobilize a 70-ton main battle tank.
that won't work on a namer.
the track links are made from overlapping s-shaped sections of hardened steel so that even if a connecting pin breaks, they naturally hold together.
it's an all-around unprecedented level of protection for an apc.
the namer has already proved itself in combat.
versatility is the namer's weak point.
the range of innovative features scores for design ingenuity.
namer is a leader in its class.
overall, the namer does enough for the number-5 position.
still to come, the hardware that's harder to kill than anything else on the planet.
30-millimeter shells -- it'll destroy anything.
narrator: coming in at number 4 in our countdown of "the indestructibles," the most heavily-armored helicopter gunship ever built -- the mil mi-24 gunship, known to nato as the "hind.
" origin -- soviet union.
cost -- estimated $8 million.
weight -- 12 tons.
length -- 57 feet.
when the hind appeared in 1972, the design was totally revolutionary.
the mi-24 was probably the most capable helicopter gunship of its time.
there was not anything as survivable and lethal as the hind d until the advent of the apache.
normally, when you build a helicopter, you tend to try and make it as light and agile as possible.
but in soviet russia, they did things a little bit differently.
narrator: the russians piled on armored plate, bringing the hind's mass to 12 tons, three times the mass of contemporary western combat helicopters.
this is the classic soviet flying gunship.
it's rugged.
it's huge by helicopter standards.
narrator: this flying tank is so hard to kill, the afghan fighters who faced it on the battlefield christened it "satan's chariot.
" the mi-24 is an ugly, brutish beast.
if death could fly, it would look like this.
narrator: the hovering heavyweight came into service in the early 1970s, but no helicopter built before or since has ever carried as much armor into the skies.
the hind's fuselage is sheathed in 5 millimeters of hardened-steel armor plate, capable of resisting cannon shells up to 12.
7-millimeter caliber.
the mi-24 has two crew -- pilot and weapon systems operator.
both are shielded by 20-millimeter-thick armored glass, comprised of five layers of alternating plastic and tempered glass.
to shift the armored monster's 12-ton bulk, they fire up the chopper's two 2,200-horsepower gas turbine engines.
[ radio chatter .]
the 56-foot-long rotor blades slice into the air, pushing the mi-24 up to speeds around 200 miles per hour.
it was the mi-24's toughness that enabled it to ignore enemy fire while it poured out the pain.
for tough targets like tanks or bunkers, the gunner can call upon stern, radio-guided, armor-piercing missiles or ub-32 rocket pods, capable of launching lethal ripple salvos.
the mi-24 had a very lethal suite of laser-guided weapons, rockets, carried a tremendous amount of firepower.
narrator: for inventing the concept of the modern-armored gunship, the mi-24 has to feature in "the indestructible" countdown.
the service record over four decades is impressive.
the hind scores for versatility with its range of weaponry.
the design is totally revolutionary.
it was a class leader in its day, but has been surpassed.
overall, the mi-24 earns enough for the number-4 spot.
at number 3, the toughest ground-attack plane ever built the a-10 thunderbolt ii.
origin -- u.
s.
a.
cost -- $12 million.
weight -- 26 tons.
length -- 53 feet.
the a-10 is known to its pilots as the "warthog.
" a-10 warthog is called that for a reason.
it's just a mean, nasty, snub-nosed tank of a plane.
narrator: it's ugly to make it tough.
the engines are shielded, placed high at the back so they get protection from the rest of the airframe.
the tails are armored.
the fuel tanks are protected.
they're self-sealing.
it's a very hardy aircraft, so you can take a tremendous amount of damage and still complete your mission and still go home.
narrator: the most incredible protection is reserved for the most vital component -- the pilot.
it has a titanium tub that the pilot sits in so he's protected.
narrator: this inch-thick layer of the rare metal is simply impenetrable to almost all ground-based guns that could possibly hit a moving plane.
so, why does the a-10 have to be so damn tough? because it's doing the toughest job in the air force.
the a-10 is designed to do one thing and one thing only -- ground attack.
narrator: to strike with maximum precision, the warthog flies low and slow over the battlefield, picking its targets, so it's going to take hits.
it's meant to go slow, low, and be able to take all sorts of infantry fire and survive right through it, and it absolutely can.
narrator: the warthog's incredible toughness means it can stay in the fight and unleash its own devastating arsenal.
this is a gbu-12 500-pound, laser-guided bomb.
it's used against buildings or bunkers, and it's accurate enough to be delivered through your living-room window.
narrator: but the big hitter is the gau-8 30-millimeter, rotary gatling cannon, simply the most powerful forward-facing gun ever placed on an aircraft.
incredibly capable gun -- airborne artillery.
reed: normally, when you build an attack aircraft, you build the plane first and then the gun to go on it, but they did things in reverse with this.
they got the gun first and then designed the aircraft around it.
its 30-millimeter shells will shower the target and destroy anything.
narrator: in the 1991 gulf war, the deadly aerial arsenal was unleashed in combat for the first time.
the results were devastating -- more than 900 tanks and 2,000 military vehicles destroyed.
a-10 is absolutely a heavyweight, tank-busting aircraft.
it can destroy anything from the air -- tanks, infantry, buildings, you name it.
narrator: target locked.
one 4-second burst sends 400 rounds of depleted uranium and incendiary ammunition ripping through the air.
capps: you hear that gatling gun firing depleted-uranium rounds -- it is scary because it just pounds the earth.
you feel the ground move.
narrator: target annihilated.
i wouldn't trade flying the a-10 for anything in the world.
anytime we get to employ weapons is a real thrill.
narrator: with this firepower, the warthog is as deadly as it is tough.
the a-10's service record is impressive.
versatility is high because of the range of targets it can attack.
the design is perfectly optimized for toughness.
it's definitely a class leader.
overall, the a-10 earns enough for the number-3 position.
still to come, the top two toughest war machines on the battlefield.
there's nothing like it.
there's no way to explain it until you've actually done it.
narrator: coming in at number 2 in "the indestructibles" countdown, the toughest, most sophisticated tank ever to come out of the former soviet union the t-90.
origin -- russia.
cost -- $4 million.
weight -- 47 tons.
length -- 31 feet.
from the ground up, russia's $4 million t-90 main battle tank is built to go up against the best in the west, and toughness is the number-one priority.
well, the t-90's probably one of the toughest tanks on the battlefield.
to be able to kill a tank with this level of protection is actually quite difficult.
narrator: the 47-ton tank's three-level approach to battlefield survival is uniquely russian.
the first level is the steel-composite armor, surrounding the entire 23-foot length of the hull.
what stands out for the t-90 is its armor.
narrator: the second level is a layer of explosive reactive armor, known as "kontakt-5," hidden beneath the outer steel plates of the turret.
it employs the kontakt-5 explosive reactive armor, and that's what give the turret its characteristic clam-looking shape.
narrator: the concealed layer of explosives detonates immediately on response to impact, deflecting incoming projectiles, reducing their penetrating power.
the final layer is the shtora-1 electro-optical active protection system.
around the turret, four laser sensors warn the crew when they have been targeted by laser-guided weapons.
two infrared lights, either side of the main gun, emit pulses of radiation to jam i.
r.
-guided missiles and a computer control system will automatically trigger the turret grenade launchers in response to a threat, providing a 70-yard smoke screen in just 3 seconds.
but the t-90's tough doesn't stop there.
at just 12 feet wide and 7 feet high, it's built small to be a hard target.
and the third-generation main battle tank is built rugged to survive operations across some of the toughest terrain on the planet.
the t-90's dazzling array of defensive features is unmatched by any tank in the west.
the t-90 has not yet seen extensive combat service.
its ability to handle a range of combat scenarios means it scores for versatility.
the innovative features score high for ingenuity.
the t-90 is one of the toughest tanks in the world.
overall, the russian hardcase's scores earn it the number-2 position.
tough can mean bulletproof, bomb-proof, or the ability to withstand hostile environments.
but one thing is certain -- tough keeps you alive.
any battle, any fight, we can engage the enemy.
narrator: in terms of all-around toughness, the combination of outstanding armor protection and exceptional combat utility puts one machine ahead of the pack the u.
s.
marine's assault breacher vehicle.
origin -- u.
s.
a.
cost -- $5 million.
weight -- 67 tons.
length -- 40 feet.
the assault breacher is an unholy hybrid of tank and bulldozer.
nothing can stand in its path.
it's heavy.
it's sturdy.
it moves with great agility.
narrator: in 2011, the assault breachers of the marine's 3rd combat engineer battalion led operation eastern storm, a major offensive against the taliban.
the greatest threat came from i.
e.
d.
s buried in the road.
hickey: many of these i.
e.
d.
s can be used for a variety of purposes.
they can be used as blocking obstacles, offensive striking weapons.
they can be designed to destroy or disable.
narrator: the breacher combats the threat with its four-feet-high, steel digging plow.
you got this humongous plow in the front.
we're able to plow up -- we plow up bombs.
narrator: the breacher just keeps plowing through the dirt to set off or disable any mines or bombs.
hubbard: if you set it deep, it goes pretty deep to pull up any command wire.
it finds all the i.
e.
d.
s.
narrator: if they go off, it's built to withstand the blast.
the americans are very good at producing levels of protection which you wouldn't see elsewhere.
gunsolus: honestly, having this vehicle makes me feel extremely safe in afghanistan.
you know, you don't really worry too much because you're driving around in 70 tons of steel around you, and hitting an i.
e.
d.
is kind of like, you know, driving over a bump in a car.
narrator: the breacher is that tough.
hazell: certain variants of the m1 have very dense materials in the turrets, and that provides a very good level of protection.
narrator: the layered armor is made from materials of different densities to protect against every conceivable threat the breacher could encounter.
it has the power to knock down walls.
.
knock down compounds knock down anything that comes into our way.
narrator: wood, dirt, or even concrete.
breacher's 67-ton bulk, powered by a 1,500-horsepower gas turbine engine, will smash it to pieces it's just a beast.
it's massive.
it's got jet engine turbines in the back.
you can literally cook your lunch or yourself if you stand behind it.
narrator: leaving the troops a clear path to wherever they need to go.
it's fast.
it's extremely rugged.
it has very good armor protection.
narrator: when the breacher encounters a serious threat, it deploys the m58 mine-clearing line charge.
a rocket-propelled projectile drags a 350-foot-long line packed with c-4 plastic explosive which detonates any bombs in its path.
well, there's nothing like it.
there's no way to explain it until you've actually done it.
you're making a big impact over there, and it means a lot to you.
it brings a great deal of satisfaction.
narrator: the breacher is built to be a battering ram right at the front of the fight, but its highly classified armor cocktail has, so far, rendered it invulnerable to all attacks.
not one has been lost in combat.
no matter what you fire at it, it's going to keep on coming, and that's why it's number 1.
the breacher has already made a big impression in combat.
versatility is high because of its ability to affect every aspect of the battlefield.
top marks for engineering that has never been equaled.
the best in its class by a long way.
despite some strong competition, ultimately, there's no contest.
there's nothing more critical than toughness on the battlefield.
and in this countdown, we've analyzed the toughest war machines on the planet.
man: i trust this vehicle with my life.
narrator: from number 10 all the way down to number 2, there are strong contenders.
but there's no doubt about the winner -- the mighty assault breacher.