Birth of an explosively formed penetrators; death of innocent civilians

Courtesy Photo | A lathe, used for cutting the steel cone of an explosively formed penetrators.  

BAGHDAD, IRAQ

09.25.2008

Story by Spc. Josh Lecappelain 

Multi-National Division-Central

By Spc. Josh LeCappelain
Multi-National Division-Center Public Affairs Office

CAMP VICTORY, Iraq – Nestled along busy routes filled with innocent, unsuspecting Iraqi citizens and caring little who unfortunately cross their path, explosively formed penetrators wield mammoth destructive power and the potential to violently kill or maim with a single ignition.

"Once a device detonates, it doesn't know or care what it hits," said Staff Sgt. Eric Loar, Multi-National Division – Center Explosive Ordnance Disposal integrator. "Fragmentation is indiscriminate."

First developed during the World War II, EFPs are a type of shaped charge created with a specific goal in mind – destruction.

Since June, there have been 16 EFP strikes in the MND-C area of operations in Iraq, each posing a risk of destroying lives and property.

"EFPs are devices that use explosives to focus a weighed piece of metal, designed solely to defeat armor," said Loar. "Typically what we see [in Iraq] is a copper or steel plate or bowl, backed with several pounds of explosives. They have a cylindrical shape to them."

While the risks associated with improvised explosive devices are extremely high, the centralized blast of an EFP can create more directly controlled blasts, with greater results.

"A non-EFP IED will typically send its fragmentation and explosive energy in 360 degrees," added Loar, a native of Cumberland, Md. "EFPs tend to focus their energy in one-spot. Fragmentation can still travel in a 360, but the focus of power is on a single point."

Due to the unique design and engineering required to construct an EFP, specific tools need to be used to create them.

"Some of the tell-tale signs of an EFP-maker in the neighborhood are the presence of the special machinery and parts necessary to create them," explained Loar. "You have to have metal working skills as well as the tools needed to make them – band saws, lathes and hydraulic presses [a minimum of a 10-ton press is required]."

The weapons are generally cylindrical in shape, with the forward end enclosed by a concave metal disk (liner) made from copper, steel, tantalum or depleted uranium.

When the explosive is initiated, the metal liner collapses, forming the disk into a high-velocity slug that penetrates metal with relative ease.

EFPs consist of the liner, which acts as the projectile, the cylindrical body and a base plate made of some combination of metal, wood, plastic and tape.

The liners are typically copper plates, approximately 1/4" inches thick. They are produced in sheets and sized by hydraulic shears (cutters). The sheets are then trimmed down using band saws into the circular shape preferred by terrorists. A die is used to form the shape of the EFP.

Steel cones can also be used, shaped by lathes and pressed into the casing by arbor press, a tool used to press two or more items together.

The housing is formed with round pipes, similar to the type found for irrigation. Band saws are used to cut the pipe to the desired length.

EFPs generally have a distinct cylindrical shape, making it easier for Iraqi security forces and coalition forces to find and disarm the devices. But insurgents have resorted to creative measures to try to camouflage their creations.

"Size wise, they can disguise them with expanded foam or piles of trash on the side of the road. The foam can break up the outline," added Loar.

EFPs can travel great distances – sometimes their blasts have gone a few miles.

"Their effective range depends on a lot – how well they were constructed, the overall diameter, the weight – these all factor into that," he said. "Something that weighs several pounds and can travel 5,000 meters a second can travel quite a distance. It's a big hunk of metal, and it is moving along very quickly."

While the destructive power of EFPs is unquestionable, ISF and CF have methods and tools at their disposal to counteract their widespread use. Specially armored vehicles and countermeasures designed to defeat EFPs have saved countless ISF and CF lives, but the innocent Iraqi population who travel the roads are not as fortunate.

On Sept. 23, 2008, an IED blast near al-Iskandariyah claimed the life of a man as well as injuring his wife and son. According to Babil police, the family was travelling in their vehicle when the locally-made IED detonated, killing the father.

"It's a multi-front attack," added Loar. "We are basically using a network to attack their network. We are attacking their logistics and supply lines."

If an Iraqi citizen has information about any IEDs or EFPs, Loar recommends contacting their local government officials or the ISF.

"The Iraqi police and Iraqi army have bomb squads, which have been trained [in defeating the devices]," he said. "And they're very competent."

As the ISF becomes better prepared to handle and defeat EFPs, they continue to injure and main innocent people, while decimating personal property and buildings that Iraqi citizens live and work in.

"EFPs are designed for one purpose - to destroy people and property," said Lt. Col. Christopher Drew, IED-Defeat officer-in-charge. "While we can defeat the ones we find, the ones we do not find are killing innocent Iraqis. If the resources used to make EFPs were instead used to build materials that Iraq needs, the Iraqi people would all be better off."

• Date Taken: 09.25.2008
• Date Posted: 09.25.2008 03:56
• Story ID: 24119
• Location: BAGHDAD, IQ