European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 13, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday april 13, 1986 the stars and stripes Page 17 a photo a Bradley rumbles through initial testing at fort Hood Texas. The general accounting office now claims the tests were rigged. Testing the Bradley for Aerial gunnery byjoe Mapother Bremerhaven Bureau a though the Bradley fighting vehicle in t considered an anti aircraft weapon 3rd inf div gunners at Podendorf Germany a Baltic sea firing Range have been using it to score hits on Aerial targets 50 to 100 percent of the time. Eighteen Bradley Crews took turns Manning four of the fighting vehicles and pumping 25mm tracer rounds skyward at an 8-by-2-foot target moving in various directions from 100 Mph to More than 400 Mph. T before going to the Range the Only Aerial gunnery training the Crews received was from books with no hands on experience said Sec. Wayne Uhden master gunner for the division s 3rd brigade. Armor piercing and High explosive rounds were fired at the targets he said. Bradley firing results at the Aerial gunnery Range operated by the German army will be sent to the . Army infantry school at fort Benning ga., for evaluation a 3rd inf div spokesman said. It was the third time since May that the division has tested Aerial gunnery with the Bradley. Nearly 7,000 Bradley have been ordered by the army not As an air defense weapon but to replace m-113 armoured personnel carriers. The pcs Are roomier for the troops Riding inside but Are equipped Only with a .50-caliber machine gun. The potential Aerial defense capability of the Bradley is no secret. It is armed with a 25mm Cannon mounted in a Turret capable of turning 60 degrees a second. Computer controlled firing of the Cannon and a 7-.62mm coaxial mounted machine gun help provide that potential. But Field testing that capability with live ammunition has been done in Usa eur Only by the 3rd inf div which has 270 of the m-2 models designed for infantry and 100 m-3 cavalry vehicles designed for use As scout vehicles. This is a kind of train the Trainer atmosphere said sgt. Forrest Taylor master gunner for 1st in 4th inf 3rd brigade. Hopefully they will spread the wealth through the  Uhden said the Lack of Aerial gunnery training was important in evaluating the results of the tests in Podendorf. Agreement with Uhden came from the co a 1st in 4th inf 3rd brigade Crew of spec. 4 Rafael Benson and a Bradley commander sgt. Kenneth Mccray. We need to get More training at least twice a year Mccray said. Firing live rounds at fast moving targets underscored the difference Between practice and real ammunition he said. For 3rd inf div soldiers based in the Wuerzburg Schaffenberg area More training will not be easy. Podendorf is the Only training area in Germany where live Aerial gunnery can take place Uhden said. The logistics of moving the Bradley from Southern Germany to the Baltic sea pose problems he said. Those problems will be considerably less for soldiers of the 2nd army div fwd based near the North German City of Bremen and soon slated to receive the Bradley. Vital statistics Bradley infantry fighting vehicle 3 Crew and 7 passengers weight approximate pounds 50.qoo engine Turbo charged diesel 500 he maximum Road Speed 40-plus Mph Road Range approximate 290 Miles Grad ability 60 percent amphibious yes armament Basic Load 25mm Cannon/900 7.62mm machine gun 2,340 seven Tow anti tank missiles six 5.56mm automatic weapons/4,200 Bradley cavalry fighting vehicle 3 Crew and 2 passengers weight approximate pounds 50,000 engine Turbo charged diesel 500 he maximum Road Speed 40-plus Mph Road Range approximate 290 Miles Grad ability 60 percent amphibious yes armament Basic Load 25mm Cannon/900 7.62mm machine gun/2,340 12 Tow anti tank missiles source Jane s Armour and artillery 1984-85