Small Tastings of Torah, Judaism and Spirituality From Rav Binny Freedman – Parshat Bo
Wake up an Israeli tank commander in the middle of the night and flash a picture of a BMP-1 APC (Armored Personnel Carrier) at a distance of 5 kilometers, when it appears to be little more than a speck in the distance, and he will instantly recognize it as a Soviet- made troop carrier that fires armor-piercing Sagger anti-tank missiles. He will also be able to rattle off to you their effective range, and threat capacity (the amount of time it takes to aim and fire, as well as which Israeli tanks will effectively pierce). He will also know instantly that this carrier is most likely to be seen in the Syrian theater of war.
The Israeli army takes the topic of enemy weaponry very seriously, and has a variety of often-sadistic methods for ensuring that its commanders become extremely proficient in this particular expertise....