Tank plinking is a term that was given by pilots during the Gulf War to the practice of using guided munitions to destroy artillery, armored personnel carriers, tanks, and other targets. As the war progressed, the term began to encompass all forms of destroying a target (such as a T-72 tank) with an overly capable weapon (such as an A-10 Thunderbolt II's GAU-8 Avenger cannon, at a cyclic rate of 3,900 rounds-per-minute). This term was discouraged by the military.