• frezik@midwest.social
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    6 months ago

    Let’s say you’re a cop and you get a call: there’s a hispanic gay crossdresser armed with a .50BMG sniper rifle with explosive rounds reported on the roof of the KwikeeMart, and they’re threatening to shoot the Walmart across the street unless they’re called by their proper pronouns, black lives/matter. This situation calls for an immediate response with at least a MRAP, and that’s only because they don’t have the funding for an airstrike from an A-10.

    • Avatar_of_Self@lemmy.world
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      6 months ago

      Yeah I mean they would need an MRAP to keep them safe while they wait for the shooter to finish up or run out of ammo. We’ve got to think of the officers and their safety.

      • Jiggle_Physics@lemmy.world
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        6 months ago

        Operating an A-10, without firing its nose gun, runs about 19k-25k and hour. A full load of rounds is 1200. They fire at a rate of 3900 rounds per minute. The rounds, depending on the exact type, cost between 90 and 175$ per round. This also doesn’t include the cost of maintaining the gun which incurs a lot of maintenance because of all the heat, and forces, involved.

        • Tryptaminev@lemm.ee
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          6 months ago

          For real? Shooting the entire load of ammo is done in like 20 seconds? SO all those brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr memes should be more like brrr?

          • Jiggle_Physics@lemmy.world
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            6 months ago

            correct. the reality is that is fires in short bursts. the rounds are huge and include, DU and tungsten cores, incendiary loads, high explosives, and others. a one second burst of fire from the A-10’s GAU 8 Avenger Gatling gun is enough to destroy anything the rounds can penetrate.