Eli5: What made Napalm so useful as a weapon of war and what were some of the drawbacks of its use in warfare?

Question

Eli5: What made Napalm so useful as a weapon of war and what were some of the drawbacks of its use in warfare?

In: 196

Answer 1

Napalm was primarily used to burn out dense foliage, like in the jungles of Vietnam. While its terrible if it gets on personnel, its mainly not an anti personnel weapon but an efficient tool to get rid of jungle cover. However, because it burns practically everything. using it against people, is terrifying, much like a flame thrower.