Explosively Formed Penetrators found in Baghdad

Explosively Formed Penetrators found in Baghdad
EFP cache found in Warij
FORWARD OPERATING BASE
KALSU, Iraq
Coalition forces found a weapons cache of explosively formed penetrators in the southern Baghdad community of Warij May 2.
Soldiers from 6th Squadron, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division were on patrol in Warij when they discovered four EFPs hidden in a closet shelf in a factory office. A brand new 107 mm rocket was also discovered. The EFPs were covered with foam and had wires leading from the back.
The cache also included 40 pounds of unknown bulk explosives, a rocket sled and blasting caps.
A guard at the factory was detained after it was determined he lied about having prior knowledge about the rocket and EFPs.
The cache was taken to a nearby forward operating base for investigation.

EFP is an explosively formed penetrator weapon. A high explosive behind a shallow cone of maleable metal (usually copper). When the high explosive detonates, the copper cone is instantly liquified. The now liquid copper forms a “slug” of molten metal flying towards the target at about 24,000 feet per second. The energy is enough to cut a small hole right through heavy armor. The molten metal ignites any flamable material it contacts on its way through the vehicle (preferred target is an armored vehicle such as a tank or armord fighting vehicle). It works like a LASER at ranges up to a couple of hundred yards, depending on the size of the copper disk and the type of explosive used. The Iranians have been making them and smuggling them into Iraq for use against our forces.

EFPs have been used in improvised explosive devices against armoured cars, for example[5] in the 1989 assassination of the German banker Alfred Herrhausen (attributed to the Red Army Faction)[citation needed], and by the Hezbollah in the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict[citation needed]. A recent development is their widespread introduction in IEDs by insurgents in Iraq.[6] The charges are generally cylindrical, fabricated from commonly available metal pipe, with the forward end closed by a concave copper or steel disk-shaped liner to create a shaped charge. Explosive is loaded behind the metal liner to fill the pipe. Upon detonation, the explosive projects the liner to form a projectile at a speed well over 1 km/s, depending on the design and type of explosive used. Because they use explosives to form a molten (technically, a super-plastically formed, but still solid) copper penetrator, instead of using an explosive blast or solid metal penetrator, these charges are extremely dangerous, even to the new generation of MRAPs (which are made to withstand an anti-tank mine), and many tanks.[7] Often mounted on crash barriers at window level, they are placed along roadsides at choke points where vehicles must slow down, such as intersections and junctions. This gives the operator time to judge the moment to fire, when the vehicle is moving more slowly.[8] Detonation is controlled by cable, radio control (RC), or remote arming with passive IR (PIR) trigger. EFPs can be deployed singly, in pairs, or in arrays, depending on the tactical situation.

source: WIKIpedia

Wild Thing’s comment…….
This is bad news for our military vehicles and their occupants. I am sooo glad they found this and maybe they will find any others so they are not out there anymore. Damn Iran!