Consequences of the Introduction of Insensitive Munitions on Safety, Collateral Damage and Operations (consequenties van de invoering van mkm- munitie op veiligheid, gevolgschade en internationaal) opereren

摘要

Between 1966 and 1981 four major accidents took place on United States aircraft carriers. In all cases a small incident resulted in a chain reaction of explosions. These accidents have led to the demand for Insensitive Munitions (IM). Nowadays NATO-partners like France, Italy and the United Kingdom have developed an IM policy for the procurement of new munitions. In this report the concept of IM is explained and some technical achievements concerning IM are reported. The use of IM enhances the sustainability of munitions and platforms in military operations and offers the highest safety level for personnel and surroundings. In accidents the number of people killed or injured and the materiel damaged will be smaller. Transport and storage of munitions are safer and more flexible and therefore save money. The total costs of insensitive munitions during the whole life-cycle are expected to be lower than the costs of conventional munitions. For international military operations it can be important to use IM to prevent exclusion by other IM-using countries. Within NATO the introduction of IM is called in the light of 'Defense against Terrorism'. At this moment for most munitions a (partly) IM substitute can be found. Reaction violence of conventional munitions towards unwanted stimuli can be reduced as well by means of mitigation techniques.