What is the difference between landmines and roadside bombs?

Question

The best answers will cite reliable sources.

Answer 1

a landmine is considered a weapon for conventional warfare, since it is specifically manufactured for such purpose it is either placed o top of or buried into the ground and is triggered when a person or vehicle either passes over it or near it. it can also be remotely triggered. land mines were primarily used to secure a boundary and to restrict movement of vehicles or personnel.
it is the lethal version of the barbed wire. an area for example can be sown with landmines thereby creating a choke point wherein the enemy's troops or vehicles will then channel through making it easier for the defending force to manage it's area of jurisdiction

a roadside bomb or improvised explosive device (ied). is usually made out of either military or commercial type of explosives. unlike the landmine, this device is mainly used to distract and disrupt a particular force's movement.

in iraq roadside bombs were lined up in a chain called a daisy chain wherein when triggered, it's effect covers the most number of personnel or vehicles in a convoy.

initially insurgents placed such devices in animal carcasses and even ordinary junked home appliances and is either triggered remotely, magnetically, infra red or by trip wire.

lately insurgents have been placing these devices in elevated positions in order to produce more damage to either personnel or vehicles. the biggest danger in a roadside bomb is since it is an improvised weapon, it can either be loaded with biological, conventional, chemical or radioactive material.

Answer 2

Generally, a landmine is triggered to go off with weight or pressure being applied to the triggering device. It can be adjusted to go off when a certain wight is applied. A man in full battle regalia will weigh a minimum of 200#, therefore the landmine, if scheduled for anti personnel targets may be set to go off when this weight is achieved. At the same time, it should fail to explode if woman or child come in contact with it.

A roadside bomb is often triggered remotely by someone with visual contact of the targeted spot. The bomber can then decide his target and detonate the bomb when his victim is in the kill zone.

Answer 3

Ding P hit it right on the money! Great answer!

In addition to using elevated positioning for IEDs, insurgents often bury them, making them more difficult to find and more deadly (it's a lot easier to hide 75 lbs of explosives if it's buried than on the side of the road; also the force of the upwards blast into the undercarriage of a vehicle can be devastating).

"A roadside bomb is often triggered remotely "-- while they can be remotely triggered, allowing for discrimination of targets, they can also be initiated by timing or pressure devices (as in a landmine... landmines are also used as roadside bombs... any improvisation to the mine makes it an IED).

Answer 4

A Landmine is a device that is manufactured for that specific purpose, a Road-side bomb is usually an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) or a Bomb that didn't explode when dropped-fired, that has now been re-wired as to explode upon some "triggering event", remote control or a myriad of other possible triggers.

Answer 5

landmines explode when you pass over them while roadside bombs explode with a remotecontoller or wire connected to the bomb or some times with a timer

Answer 6

Sometimes they are the same.

A landmine can be used as a roadside bomb, there is no secret ingredient for roadside bombs.

Answer 7

When the "good guys" use them they are called landmines. When the "bad guys" use them they are called roadside bombs.

Answer 8

Anti-personnel and other types of mines have trigger mechanisms for activation. IED's are set down (not buried) and can be detonated remotely by remote control.