Catastrophic kill

Among tank crewmen it is also commonly known as a brew-up, coined from the British World War II term for lighting a fire in order to brew tea.

The expression arose because British troops used an old petrol tin with holes punched in the side as a makeshift stove on which to brew their tea.

The flames licking out of the holes in the side of the tin resembled a burning tank, and thus the expression was coined.

A catastrophic kill does not necessarily preclude the survival of the vehicle's crew, although most historical casualties in armored warfare were the result of K-kills.

This type of kill is also associated with the jack-in-the-box effect, where a tank's turret is blown skyward due to the overpressure of an ammunition explosion.