How Much Ammo is Required for a 52 Hour Gunfight?

[tekisui]

3 or 4 gunmen are still firing in the Taj Hotel. They have been at it now for 52+ hours. They have to run out of ammo at some point, right? I know they could have reloaded with the ammo of other gunmen who were killed, but how long can this go on?

[aikoaiko]

1. Depends on a lot of things

But these fuckers came prepared.

I think I recall reading that intermediate rifle rounds like 7.62x39 or 5.56x45 were designed, in part, with the idea that a single soldier should be able to schlep 1000 rounds of it.

[Richard D]

2. Enough pre-planning . . .

. . . that they could have rented a room and loaded it up before the attack.

[tekisui]

6. Good point.

I just heard that there was two teams. The bomb and grenade throwers came in by boat. The gunmen have been in the city for some time.

[spindrifter]

3. They have apparently been

planning for 6 months, including having some of their people on staff at the Taj--reports include that one was a chef trainee. They had set up "command posts" in the hotels--so they could have been sneaking stuff in for quite a while. At some point,even if they are loaded up with drugs, they are going to run out of steam. There are apparently a few more terrorists in the Taj, so perhaps they work in shifts--even so...and even if they have practiced staying up for hours on end...at some point they are going to be finished off.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

4. Military field manuals describe the amount needed as...

"One metric shitload". Considering the selection of weapons and explosives and the fact that these guys were not seen to be wearing full battle dress, with all the pockets, pouches, straps and packs, it could point to the fact that their preparation for this op was shit hot. Because, they cached a lot of ammo and other things before their assault.

Now that's good planning and logistics. To a shitty end? Absolutely. But someone was real good at the planning end of this op.

[lob1]

5. Someone could've checked in the night before as a guest

with suitcases full of ammo and explosives, so their extra ammo would be waiting for them.

[tekisui]

7. Or even for weeks.

Reports say the "shooting team" has been in the city for some time.

[TheWraith]

8. They probably aren't firing continuously.

Even one round every five minutes is only a little more than 600 rounds. Still, you're right that they have to run out sooner or later.

[spindrifter]

9. A big fear is that they plan to set off a

massive explosion in the Taj at the end of this nightmare.

[tekisui]

10. Ugh.

I heard they have left unexploded grenades in the hallways, impeding the military attempts to reach them.

I hope the commandos get to the attackers before something is detonated, if it is there.

[sarcasmo]

11. If the fighting is non stop, that's a heck of a lot of ammo being spent.

Was at the range today, and me and my Brother in Law unloaded about a 100 rounds in a half hour, target shooting his 9mm.

[Mike 03]

12. Something to consider.

The terrorists set up a "control" room in the hotels. Some of the terrorists were killed early on and the ones who survived could split up the dead ones' ammo.