but, isn't it in the least bit strange that none of the ground assault team is wearing any kind of body armor?? I mean, even in 1988, U.S. and (I assume) Soviet forces had to have some type of personal protective armor, didn't they? I just find that strange - probably would have saved Hickman's life, and saved Col. Vardovsky from getting that broken arm.
shareAlso strange that they'd go in with two antique tanks instead of helicopters, or simply a few special ops teams.
Also strange that the C-130 had to get shot down before the tanks could land - seriously, how were they going to deliver them before that?
Also strange that two Soviet tanks could destroy an entire Iranian column - what the hell were the other guys shooting with? I could kind of excuse the airplane sequence, but not the ground one.
Also strange that the Soviets and the Americans would each dispatch one strategic bomber to nuke the Iranian facility. 1) isn't one nuke enough and 2) why use heavy and lumbering strategic bombers when you've got ICBMs and SLBMs?
Also strange that someone as overweight as the special ops guy would be allowed to serve in the U.S. military.
For some reason, I was able to suspend my disbelief in the first movie, but not in the sequels.
Denny Crane.
As to "how were they going to deliver them (the tanks) before that," I'm thinking they might have used something similar to LAPES (Low Altitude Parachute Ejection System), in which the C-130 would come in extremely low (maybe 5-10 feet off the ground) with the rear cargo door open, then ever so slightly push the nose upward, allowing the tanks to slide out the rear cargo door onto the desert floor.
As to the bombers, I think the reason for two was a nod to the "detente" that was being attempted - although, you're right, one nuke should have been more than enough for that mission. As to using bombers instead of ICBMs or SLBMs, that's a question I can't really answer - if it were a straight U.S.-Soviet war, I would say it was the time factor (see By Dawn's Early Light), but in this instance, I'm not so sure.
Finally, to everything else, it's just a movie, for the love of Pete! Movies aren't supposed to be completely realistic.
"Has anybody ever told you you have a SERIOUS IMPULSE CONTROL PROBLEM??"
What's strange is that the female Soviet pilot's name is Valery - in Russia and the former USSR, Valery is a masculine name :(
I pretend to work because the Soviet government pretends to pay me.