NIMIC WORKSHOP

The risk issues

6-10 November 2000

Ottawa, Canada

 

TITLE: MUNITIONS WITH RISK ATTENUATION (MURAT) REDUCE THE VULNERABILITY OF LOGISTIC CONCENTRATIONS

Author : Jean GOLIGER - Club MURAT – BP N° 129 – 7, rue Latécoère

78148 VELIZY Cedex – France – Phone : 33.1.39.46.15.50 Fax : 33.1.39.46.15.38

E-mail: cost-benefits-wg@clubmurat.com

Co-AUTHOR: Raymond COLENOClub MURAT

ABSTRACT:

Generalization of allied military operations lead to inevitable concentrations of means.

The limitation of explosive risks is based mainly on the dispersal of stores and their isolation.

The imposed conditions may make difficult to apply those principles: Concentrations of means make ideal targets. Once the sites are hit, when not muratized munitions are present, they are devastated.

With MURAT, propagation of the explosive disaster is impossible: MURATs are a solution.

ACB Software developed by Club MURAT / Cost Benefit Working group allows taking into account MURAT influence on logistic concentrations.

 

1. GENERALIZED OPERATIONS

Since more of ten years, interallied military operations are becoming more generalized (Kuwait, Bosnia, Kosovo,…). They are decided and released under the international organizations aegis such that the NATO or the UN after period of strong tensions in the course of which there are no armed forces deployments so as to privilege peaceful and political regulation of conflicts.

If such solutions cannot be achieved, operations of great scale begin; they characterize by:

The will to display superiority that imposes the use of a large contingent of armaments and munitions.

A temporary character including offensive and defensive constraints

The interoperability of the means issued from different countries and so from different forces.

The necessity of rapid intervention on operational theater which could be faraway even very faraway from the allied ammunition stores. This speed of intervention is needed to give credibility to the international will and to expect to avoid opening hostilities.

The allocations of military or civil sites to foreign operational units by neighbor countries of the zone of tension. These imposed sites are not necessary built to welcome forces strongly equipped with their stores of ammunition. They can be often located in peri-urban or even urban areas.

Heavy logistics with numerous convoys (planes, trains, trucks, ships) depending the accessibility of conflict zone. At beginning of the military operations, these logistics are also characterized by temporary concentrations of means. This is equally true at the end of the war, when all military forces wish to go back home.

The possible, even probable, and simultaneously presence of very different munitions or armaments on a same site. Common stores can be used without preliminary particular safety analyses.

2. CONCENTRATIONS OF MEANS

 

All military forces of the world seek to avoid concentrations of means without always getting there. Concentrations have existed and will ever exist.

a. Choked points for logistics

Ports : Loading and/ or unloading of ships

Airports : often located in peri-urban zone when they are not totally devoted to military operations

Railways stations especially zones of freight and station loading of sorting.

Road system.

b. Air bases put to disposition and strongly supplied in ammunition during crisis and combat time.

c. Surface ships loaded with ammunition for supply.

d. Terrestrial mean concentrations that can appear in hostile territory at the beginning of a conflict, during the initial installation phase of forces. These concentrations constitute preferential targets for actions of terrorist type.

e. These same concentrations of means can reproduce at the end of conflict (or crisis) when forces want to leave their zone of allocation. These concentrations are then sensitive to accidental stimuli (cf Camp Doha accident)

3. REGULATION

All forces are submitted in peacetime and in combattime to national rules concerning storage and isolation distance of armed platforms.

These rules, during temporary operations, are very difficult to apply. They should necessitate important civil engineering constructions such as earth mounds or concrete walls.

The limitation of the explosive risk is also based on the dispersion of storage. Quantity-Distance rules become inapplicable as soon as the quantity of ammunition or equipment is incompatible with capacities and configuration of zones put to disposition. These sites have not adequate area to respect isolation distance even for serious damage zones.

In hostile territory, the dispersion of means contradict the protection and security rules. Concentrations of means are easy to detect because often situated in foreseeable places. They make thereby preferential ideal targets for deliberated attacks (war acts or terrorism acts).

In these conditions, not-muratised stores of ammunition or weapon platforms equipped with not-muratised armament present an important threat regarding the consequences of an attack.

Once hit, sites are devastated, not due to the direct aggression but to the amplification provided by successive ammunition reactions.

The importance of the destruction of one site can make it inoperative during a long period needed for repair works. This destruction could have other types of consequences:

A bad media-impact in case of human losses or injuries

The remaining staff could become very vulnerable without means of defense.

4. THE MURAT (or insensitive munition) SOLUTION

The French MURAT policy issued in 1993 define three levels of acceptance criteria for insensitive ammunition (see table 1 hereinafter).

TABLE 1

STIMULI

French DOD MURAT labels

 

MURAT*

MURAT**

MURAT***

FAST COOK OFF

IV

V

V

SLOW COOK OFF

III

V

V

BULLET IMPACT

III

III

V

SYMPATHETIC REACTION

III

III

IV

LIGHT FRAGMENT IMPACT

I

III

V

HEAVY FRAGMENT IMPACT

I

III

IV

SHAPED CHARGE JET

I

I

III

DROP

No reaction(NR)

NR

NR

ELECTRIC STIMULI

NR

NR

NR

The utilization of muratized ammunition allows regular logistic gains. The gains are more significant with a great quantity of ammunition or important weapon platforms.

Gains concretize by reduction of isolation distance as well as by reduction in the detonation probability.

As of the MURAT first level (MURAT *), consequences of a fortuitous or deliberate stimulus are minimized. The response of a muratized munition is less violent.

The propagation of an explosive disaster is impossible:

- There is no longer any risk of massive detonation of the ammunition present in the storage.

- There is no longer any risk of massive destruction of the neighbor weapon platforms.

- Risks due to fragments are highly limited.

The intervention of fire brigade against nearby fire is conceivable without excessive risk and the effect on the environment are kept to a minimum.

After the event, the site remains partially operational and keeps defense capacity.

 

Multinational operations present supplementary risks because all nations have not necessarily the same approach or solutions towards ammunition.

The interoperability of means taken into account by the different forces would earn in safety with the utilization of insensitive ammunitions.

The diminution of risks during field storage would be more easily collectively managed with muratised munitions.

 

5. CLUB MURAT COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS SOFTWARE

"ACB" is a Cost Benefit Analysis Software, developed by Club MURAT-CB-WG (Cost Benefit Working Group). It allows taking into account MURAT influence on logistic concentrations.

However, this is the topic of the next NIMIC Workshop.