Damage to armor with various types of ammunition. Sub-caliber ammunition: shells and bullets, principle of operation, description and history The principle of operation of an armor-piercing projectile

In the game World of Tanks equipment can be equipped with different types of projectiles, such as armor-piercing, sub-caliber, cumulative and high-explosive fragmentation. In this article we will look at the features of the action of each of these projectiles, the history of their invention and use, the pros and cons of their use in a historical context. The most common and, in most cases, standard shells on the vast majority of vehicles in the game are armor-piercing shells(BB) caliber device or sharp-headed.
According to Ivan Sytin’s Military Encyclopedia, the idea for the prototype of current armor-piercing shells belongs to the Italian navy officer Bettolo, who in 1877 proposed using the so-called “ bottom shock tube for armor-piercing projectiles"(before this, the shells were either not loaded at all, or the explosion of the powder charge was calculated on heating the head of the projectile when it hit the armor, which, however, was not always justified). After penetrating the armor, the damaging effect is provided by projectile fragments heated to a high temperature and fragments of armor. During World War II, shells of this type were easy to manufacture, reliable, had fairly high penetration, and worked well against homogeneous armor. But there was also a minus - on sloping armor the projectile could ricochet. The greater the thickness of the armor, the more fragments of armor are formed when penetrated by such a projectile, and the higher the destructive power.

The animation below illustrates the action of a chambered sharp-headed armor-piercing projectile. It is similar to an armor-piercing sharp-headed projectile, but in the rear part there is a cavity (chamber) with a TNT explosive charge, as well as a bottom fuse. After penetrating the armor, the shell explodes, striking the crew and equipment of the tank. In general, this projectile retained most of the advantages and disadvantages of the AR projectile, being distinguished by a significantly higher armor-protection effect and slightly lower armor penetration (due to the lower mass and strength of the projectile). During the War, the bottom fuses of shells were not sufficiently advanced, which sometimes led to a premature explosion of the shell before penetrating the armor, or to failure of the fuse after penetration, but the crew, in the event of penetration, rarely felt better about it.

Sub-caliber projectile(BP) has a rather complex design and consists of two main parts - armor-piercing core and pallet. The task of the pallet, made of mild steel, is to accelerate the projectile in the barrel bore. When a projectile hits a target, the pan is crushed, and the heavy and hard pointed core, made of tungsten carbide, pierces the armor.
The projectile does not have a bursting charge, ensuring that the target is hit by fragments of the core and fragments of armor heated to high temperatures. Sub-caliber projectiles have significantly less weight compared to conventional armor-piercing projectiles, which allows them to accelerate in the gun barrel to significantly higher speeds. As a result, penetration sub-caliber shells turns out to be significantly higher. The use of sub-caliber shells made it possible to significantly increase the armor penetration of existing guns, which made it possible to hit even outdated guns against more modern, well-armored armored vehicles.
At the same time, sub-caliber shells have a number of disadvantages. Their shape resembled a coil (there were projectiles of this type and streamlined shape, but they were significantly less common), which greatly worsened the ballistics of the projectile, in addition, the lightweight projectile quickly lost speed; as a result, at long distances the armor penetration of sub-caliber projectiles dropped significantly, turning out to be even lower than that of classic armor-piercing projectiles. During World War II, sabot rounds did not work well against sloping armor because the hard but brittle core easily broke under bending loads. The armor-piercing effect of such shells was inferior to armor-piercing caliber shells. Small-caliber sub-caliber projectiles were ineffective against armored vehicles that had protective shields made of thin steel. These shells were expensive and difficult to manufacture, and most importantly, scarce tungsten was used in their manufacture.
As a result, the number of sub-caliber shells in the ammunition load of guns during the war was small; they were allowed to be used only to hit heavily armored targets at short distances. The German army was the first to use sub-caliber shells in small quantities in 1940 during battles in France. In 1941, faced with heavily armored Soviet tanks, the Germans switched to the widespread use of sub-caliber shells, which significantly increased the anti-tank capabilities of their artillery and tanks. However, a shortage of tungsten limited the production of projectiles of this type; as a result, in 1944, the production of German sub-caliber shells was discontinued, while most of the shells fired during the war years were of a small caliber (37-50 mm).
Trying to get around the tungsten shortage problem, the Germans produced Pzgr.40(C) sub-caliber projectiles with a hardened steel core and surrogate Pzgr.40(W) projectiles with a regular steel core. In the USSR, fairly large-scale production of sub-caliber shells, created on the basis of captured German ones, began at the beginning of 1943, and most of the shells produced were of 45 mm caliber. The production of these projectiles is more than large calibers was limited by a shortage of tungsten, and they were issued to troops only when there was a threat of an enemy tank attack, and a report was required to be written for each spent shell. Also, sub-caliber shells were used to a limited extent by the British and American armies in the second half of the war.

HEAT projectile(KS).
The principle of this armor-piercing ammunition significantly different from the operating principle kinetic ammunition, which include conventional armor-piercing and sub-caliber projectiles. A cumulative projectile is a thin-walled steel projectile filled with a powerful explosive - hexogen, or a mixture of TNT and hexogen. At the front of the projectile, the explosive has a goblet-shaped recess lined with metal (usually copper). The projectile has a sensitive head fuse. When a projectile collides with armor, the explosive detonates. At the same time, the lining metal is melted and compressed by the explosion into a thin stream (pestle), flying forward at extremely high speed and piercing armor. The armor effect is ensured by a cumulative jet and splashes of armor metal. The hole of a cumulative projectile is small in size and has melted edges, which has led to a common misconception that cumulative projectiles “burn through” armor.
The penetration of a cumulative projectile does not depend on the speed of the projectile and is the same at all distances. Its production is quite simple; the production of the projectile does not require the use of large quantity scarce metals. The cumulative projectile can be used against infantry and artillery as a high-explosive fragmentation projectile. At the same time, cumulative shells during the war were characterized by numerous shortcomings. The manufacturing technology of these projectiles was not sufficiently developed, as a result, their penetration was relatively low (approximately the same as the caliber of the projectile or slightly higher) and was unstable. The rotation of the projectile at high initial speeds made it difficult to form a cumulative jet; as a result, the cumulative projectiles had a low initial speed, a short effective firing range and high dispersion, which was also facilitated by the non-optimal shape of the projectile head from an aerodynamic point of view (its configuration was determined by the presence of a notch).
The big problem was the creation of a complex fuse, which should be sensitive enough to quickly detonate a projectile, but stable enough not to explode in the barrel (the USSR was able to develop such a fuse suitable for use in powerful tank and anti-tank guns, only at the end of 1944). The minimum caliber of a cumulative projectile was 75 mm, and the effectiveness of cumulative projectiles of this caliber was greatly reduced. Mass production of cumulative projectiles required the deployment of large-scale production of hexogen.
The most widespread use of cumulative shells was by the German army (for the first time in the summer and autumn of 1941), mainly from 75 mm caliber guns and howitzers. The Soviet army used cumulative shells, created on the basis of captured German ones, from 1942-43, including them in the ammunition of regimental guns and howitzers, which had a low initial velocity. The British and American armies used shells of this type, mainly in the ammunition loads of heavy howitzers. Thus, in the Second World War (unlike the present time, when improved shells of this type form the basis of the ammunition load of tank guns), the use of cumulative shells was quite limited, mainly they were considered as a means of anti-tank self-defense of guns that had low initial speeds and low armor penetration with traditional shells (regimental guns, howitzers). At the same time, all participants in the war actively used other anti-tank weapons with cumulative ammunition– grenade launchers, aerial bombs, hand grenades.

High-explosive fragmentation projectile(OF).
It was developed in the late 40s of the twentieth century in Great Britain to destroy enemy armored vehicles. It is a thin-walled steel or cast iron projectile filled with an explosive substance (usually TNT or ammonite), with a head fuse. Unlike armor-piercing shells, high-explosive fragmentation shells did not have a tracer. When it hits a target, the projectile explodes, hitting the target with fragments and a blast wave, either immediately - a fragmentation effect, or with some delay (which allows the projectile to go deeper into the ground) - a high-explosive effect. The projectile is intended primarily to destroy openly located and sheltered infantry, artillery, field shelters (trenches, wood-earth firing points), unarmored and lightly armored vehicles. Well-armored tanks and self-propelled guns are resistant to high-explosive fragmentation shells.
The main advantage of a high-explosive fragmentation projectile is its versatility. This type of projectile can be used effectively against the vast majority of targets. Another advantage is that it costs less than armor-piercing and cumulative projectiles of the same caliber, which reduces the cost of combat operations and firing training. In case of a direct hit in vulnerable areas (turret hatches, engine compartment radiator, ejection screens of the aft ammunition rack, etc.), the HE can disable the tank. Also hit by projectiles large caliber can cause destruction of lightly armored vehicles, and damage to heavily armored tanks, consisting of cracking of armor plates, jamming of the turret, failure of instruments and mechanisms, injuries and concussions of the crew.

Secrets of Russian artillery. The last argument of the kings and commissars [with illustrations] Shirokorad Alexander Borisovich

Focus 3rd - sub-caliber shells

Work on creating sub-caliber shells began in our country at the end of 1918, and it is more convenient to talk about them in chronological order. The first domestic sub-caliber shells were manufactured in Petrograd at the beginning of 1919. By the way, in the documents of the Art Directorate of the Red Army 1918–1938. they were called combined. I use a more modern name for the convenience of readers. The "combined" projectile consisted of a sabot and an "active" projectile. The weight of the entire structure was 236 kg, and the active projectile of 203 mm caliber was 110 kg.

The combined shells were intended for 356/52 mm guns, which were to be armed with Izmail-class battlecruisers. Initially, the Maritime Department planned to order 76 356/52 mm guns, of which 48 were going to be installed on cruisers, 24 as spare ones for cruisers, and 4 on a naval range. 36 guns were ordered to the Vickers plant in England and 40 to the Obukhov steel plant.

The 356/52 mm MA guns should not be confused with the 356/52 mm guns of the Army (SA). In 1912–1914 The GAU ordered the OSZ 17 356/52-mm SA cannons, which differed from naval guns in their greater weight and larger chamber volume.

Until October 1917, at least ten 356/52 mm guns were delivered from England, but the OSZ did not deliver a single one. Field tests of 356/52 mm guns began in 1917 on a special Durlyakher testing machine. In 1922, 8 finished Vickers guns and 7 unfinished OSZ guns were stored at the OSZ, of which 4 were 60% ready.

As a result, by 1918, only one 356/52-mm cannon, installed on the Durlyakher machine gun on Rzhevka, could fire. On this installation, the barrels were constantly changed, and it was always ready to fire. In 1941–1944 A 356-mm range installation from a standard 356/52-mm barrel fired at the German troops besieging Leningrad. The Durlyakher installation is still located on Rzhevka (but at least it was there in 2000).

The Izmail-class battlecruisers were not completed. Several projects for the construction of naval monitors armed with 356 mm cannons were developed, but they were not implemented. In the mid-1930s, the TM-1–14 railway transporters (the first naval transporter with a 14-inch gun) were armed with 356/52 mm cannons. In total, two railway batteries were formed, each of which had three TM-1–14 transporters. One of these batteries was based near Leningrad, and the other two were based near Vladivostok.

But let's return to combined projectiles. During their firing at Rzhevka in 1919, an initial velocity of 1291 m/s was obtained at a pressure in the barrel bore of 2450 kg/cm2 (that is, slightly more than with a standard projectile - 2120 kg/cm2).

On October 15, 1920, the Perm plant received an order (in excess of the program) for 70 combined 356/203 mm shells for the Marine training ground. The first 15 shells were delivered to the customer in June 1921.

For several years, the projectile was designed by trial and error, and finally in June 1924, when firing a 203-mm active projectile weighing 110 kg at a speed of 1250 m/s, a maximum range of 48.5 km was obtained. However, during these firings, large dispersion in accuracy and range was noted.

The test managers explained the dispersion by the fact that the steepness of the rifling of the standard 356/52-mm cannon of 30 calibers does not ensure the correct flight of projectiles.

In this regard, it was decided to drill out the barrel of the 356/52 mm gun to 368 mm with a steeper rifling. After calculating several options, the rifling steepness of 20 calibers was finally adopted.

The bore of the 368 mm gun No. 1 was bored in 1934 at the Bolshevik plant. At the beginning of December 1934, tests of gun No. 1 began, which were unsuccessful due to the quality of the shells.

At the beginning of 1935, the Bolshevik plant produced new 220/368-mm sub-caliber projectiles of drawings 3217 and 3218 with belt pallets, which were fired in June - August 1935. The weight of the structure was 262 kg, and the weight of the 220-mm active projectile - 142 kg, powder charge - 255 kg. During testing, a speed of 1254–1265 m/s was obtained. Received during shooting on August 2, 1935 average range 88,720 m at an elevation angle of about 50°. The lateral deviation during firing was 100–150 m.

To further increase the firing range, work began to reduce the weight of the pallet.

At the end of 1935, shells with belt pallets of drawing 6125 were fired. The weight of the active projectile was 142 kg, and the weight of the pallet was 120 kg, the firing range was 97,270 m at an angle of +42°. Average dispersion over four shots: lateral - 55 m, longitudinal - 935 m. Expected range at an angle of +50° - 110 km. The pallets fell at a distance of 3–5 km. A total of 47 shots were fired with projectiles of design 6125.

By that time, the conversion of the second 356mm gun into a 368mm gun had been completed. When testing the 368-mm gun No. 2 in 1936 - early 1937 with the projectile of drawing 6314, satisfactory results were obtained, and on their basis, in March 1937, tables were compiled for firing from a 368-mm cannon with projectiles of drawing 6314. Design of the projectile of drawing 6314 weighed 254 kg, of which the belt pallet accounted for 112.1 kg, and the active projectile accounted for 140 kg. The length of the 220 mm active projectile is 5 calibers. The explosive used was 7 kg of TNT and an RGM fuse. When firing a full charge of 223 kg, the initial speed was 1390 m/s and the range was 120.5 kg. Thus, the same range was obtained as that of the Paris Gun, but with a heavier projectile. The main thing was that an ordinary naval cannon was used, and the survivability of the barrel was much greater than that of the Germans. The 368-mm barrels were supposed to be installed on TM-1–14 railway transporters.

However, at this stage work with belt pallets was suspended, since preference was given to star pallets. But before moving on to shells with star-shaped trays, I’ll finish the story about ultra-long-range guns with conventional belt shells.

In 1930–1931 in the design bureau of the Bolshevik plant they designed a 152-mm ultra-long-range AB cannon, and in 1932 an agreement was concluded with the plant for the production of an experimental 152-mm AB cannon, or more precisely, for the conversion of the barrel of a 305/52-mm standard cannon. A new 152mm inner tube was inserted into the old barrel and a new muzzle was made. The outer dimensions of the clip were made according to the outlines of a 356/52 mm gun, since all tests were supposed to be carried out on a 356 mm machine of the Durlacher system. The length of the AB gun was 18.44 m (121.5 caliber). The steepness of the rifling is 25 calibers, the number of rifling is 12, the depth of rifling is 3.0 mm. Remaking the barrel was delayed due to technological difficulties. Therefore, the AB cannon arrived from the Bolshevik to NIAP only in September 1935. According to calculations, when firing a light caliber projectile of drawing 5465 weighing 41.7 kg, the initial speed should have been 1650 m/s, and the range should have been 120 km.

The first firing from a 152-mm AB cannon with a projectile of drawing 5465 was carried out on June 9, 1936. A charge of B8 gunpowder weighing 75 kg was used. However, the initial speed was only 1409 m/s, and the estimated range was not obtained.

After testing, the shells were modified. But the machine at NIAP was occupied at least until October 1940 (as already mentioned, all experiments with heavy guns were carried out from a single Durlyakher machine). In addition, in 1940, new shells for the TM-1-14 railway installations were intensively fired from the standard 356/52-mm cannon. As a result, repeated testing of the AB gun was repeatedly postponed. The author does not have information about its testing in 1941.

It is interesting that, along with testing of ultra-long-range sabot shells for 356–368 mm guns, tests were carried out of sabot shells for 152 mm land guns with a capacity of 200 poods (model 1904). Such shells were supposed to be adopted for service with 6-inch guns with a capacity of 200 poods and 6-inch guns image. 1910 About two dozen 152 mm sub-caliber projectiles were designed. The weight of the entire structure was 17–20 kg, and the weight of the active projectile of 95 mm caliber was 10–13 kg, the rest was on the pallet. The estimated firing range was 22–24 km.

When firing at NIAP from 6-inch guns with 200 poods on October 21, 1927, 152/95-mm sub-caliber shells with a total weight of 18.7 kg and charges weighing 8.2 kg of C42 gunpowder at an elevation angle of 37, an initial speed of 972 m was achieved. With. An active projectile weighing 10.4 kg fell at a distance of 18.7 km (Fig. 5.3).

Rice. 5.3. 152/95 mm sub-caliber shells.

In 1935, at the ANII of the Red Army, under the leadership of P.V. Makhnevich, turbo pallets for 152/95-mm combined (sub-caliber) shells were developed. Shells with a turbo sump could be fired from both conventional rifled and smooth-bore guns. The turbo pan did not have copper or other belts, and its rotation was “provided by the action of jets moving along grooves milled on the outer surface of the pan.”

The total weight of the combined projectile of drawing 6433 was 20.9 kg, while the weight of the active projectile was 10.14 kg, and the turbo sump was 10.75 kg.

The first firing tests of the turbo sump were carried out on April 3, 1936 from a 152 mm (6-inch) gun mod. 1904. The weight of the charge was 7.5–8.4 kg, the initial velocity of the projectile was 702–754 m/s. The pan gave the projectiles a satisfactory spin rate. The separation of the projectile elements occurred at a distance of 70 m from the muzzle, and the average distance of the sabot falling was about 500 m.

Nevertheless, by mid-1936, the ANII recognized work on combined projectiles with turbo-pallets as unpromising and decided to stop them.

By that time, work was in full swing at the ANII on the so-called “star-shaped” pallet for combined projectiles, which had begun already in 1931.

Guns with star trays had a small number of riflings (usually 3–4) of great depth. The cross-sections of the shell trays repeated the cross-section of the channel. These guns can formally be classified as guns with rifled projectiles.

To begin with, ANII decided to test toothed pallets on a small-caliber gun. In the standard 76 mm barrel anti-aircraft gun arr. 1931, a 67/40 mm caliber liner was inserted (rifling/margin). The liner had 3 grooves with a depth of 13.5 mm. The weight of the active projectile is 1.06 kg, the weight of the pallet is 0.6 kg.

Work on the production of the liner began in 1936 at plant No. 8 (in Podlipki). When testing guns with a 67/40 mm liner, an initial speed of 1200 m/s was achieved at a pressure of 2800 kg/cm2; the range was not determined during the tests. The shells tumbled in flight (“had the wrong flight”). According to the commission, the 40-mm active projectiles did not receive the required rotation speed due to the rotation of the pallets relative to the projectiles.

The ANII conducted similar experiments with the standard 152-mm Br-2 cannon, into which a free tube of 162/100 mm caliber (along the rifling/along the fields) was inserted. The pipe was cut using the CEA system at the Barrikady plant. During testing, a projectile with a total weight of 22.21 kg and an active projectile weight of 16.84 kg achieved an initial speed of 1100 m/s at a pressure of 2800 kg/cm2; the firing range was not determined, since the projectiles tumbled here too.

According to the resolution of the Council of Labor and Defense of October 10, 1935 No. S-142ss, the Barrikady plant was given the task of developing working drawings and converting the 368-mm gun No. 1 into a 305/180-mm cannon for firing sub-caliber shells with star-shaped trays. The deadline was set for May 1937.

The final version of the project was carried out by the ANII under the leadership of M. Ya. Krupchatikov with the assistance of E. A. Berkalov. The caliber of the CEA channel was changed from 305/180mm to 380/250mm, and the number of riflings was changed from three to four. The drawings were signed at the ANII on June 4, 1936, and were received by the Barrikady plant only in August 1936. At the end of autumn 1936, the forging of the inner pipe was being annealed. The barrel of the 368-mm gun No. 1 was delivered from NIAP to the plant. However, the work was delayed, and a new deadline for the delivery of the barrel was set - February 1, 1938 (Fig. 5.4).

Rice. 5.4. 380/250 mm rifled projectile.

Calculations were carried out for a chamber volume of 360 dm3 and a charge of NGV gunpowder weighing 237 kg. The length of the channel is the same as that of the standard 356/52 mm gun. The barrel is fastened at the breech in 5 layers. The bolt is standard from a 356/52 mm gun. Increasing the number of rifling to four was done to strengthen the barrel and better center the active projectile.

According to calculations, the TM-1–14 installation was supposed to withstand fire from a 380/250 mm cannon.

On January 17, 1938, the Ordnance Department notified Barricades that work on the 380/250 mm barrel was suspended.

From the book Battle for the Stars-2. Space Confrontation (Part I) author Pervushin Anton Ivanovich

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Focus 1 - polygonal shells In the late 1920s - early 1930s, the USSR attempted to rearm all land and naval artillery with polygonal guns. Official military historians will be indignant - not in any of the many books on our history

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Focus 2 - rifled projectiles As already mentioned, in the 50s–70s of the 19th century, dozens of systems were manufactured whose projectiles had rifling or protrusions. In Soviet artillery systems for rifled projectiles, the channel structure differed little from the usual channels of the 1877 model,

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Projectiles for defense A projectile, as a rule, is more commonly classified as an attribute of an offensive weapon. However, Honored Inventor of Russia V.A. Odintsov came up with shells that can be classified as self-defense weapons. Member of the Committee's scientific expert council State Duma By

One of the tasks of a modern main battle tank is to destroy similar enemy equipment, for which it requires a powerful weapon and appropriate armor-piercing shells. Russian tanks are armed with several anti-tank ammunition, allowing them to fight well-protected enemy equipment. In addition, in the near future, new models intended for use with advanced weapons should go into large-scale production.

The highest armor penetration characteristics are shown by armor-piercing finned sabot projectiles (AFPS). Such ammunition appeared several decades ago, and subsequently established itself as a convenient means of destroying armored vehicles with powerful protection different types. As a result, at present it is BOPS that turn out to be the main tool of tanks for fighting other tanks. The development of this class of projectiles continues.

Serial "Mango"

According to various sources, Russian armored units currently have several types of BOPS in service, and the most widespread representative of this class is the 3BM-42 “Mango”. The development of a new projectile with increased power under the code “Mango” began in the first half of the eighties. Through the use of certain materials, technologies and solutions, armor penetration should be increased in comparison with existing projectiles. Use future projectile The 3BM-42 was supposed to be equipped with existing tank guns of the 2A46 family.

The T-72B3 main tank carries an improved automatic loader, compatible with extended-length projectiles. Photo Vitalykuzmin.net

A few years later, the 3VBM-17 round with 3BM-42 BOPS entered service. It includes the so-called. a burning cylinder, inside of which a driving device with a projectile is rigidly attached. Also, a separate partially combustible cartridge case with ignition means is used for firing. The cavities of the cartridge case and cylinder are filled with tubular gunpowder, which ensures acceleration of the projectile.

The creators of the Mango projectile coped with the task of increasing armor penetration, and did it in a very interesting way. The projectile has a special design, due to which an increase in the main characteristics is achieved. At the same time, externally the 3BM-42 is almost no different from other products in its class. This BOPS is a hollow cylindrical body of small diameter, made of steel and equipped with a tail stabilizer. The front end of the case is closed with a ballistic cap, etc. armor-piercing damper. In the housing cavity there are two tungsten cores, one after the other, held in place by a jacket of low-melting metal.

A resettable driving device made of aluminum is installed on the projectile. It has a conical shape with a flared front. Interaction with the barrel bore is ensured by several rings on the outer surface of the device. The 3VBM-17 round, including a cylinder, a projectile and a driving device, has a length of 574 mm and a diameter of 125 mm. The mass of the projectile itself is 4.85 kg.

A 3VBM-17 shot with a 3BM-42 "Mango" projectile. Photo Fofanov.armor.kiev.ua

The combustion of gunpowder in the cartridge case and cylinder allows the projectile with the driving device to be accelerated to a speed of no more than 1700 m/s. After exiting the barrel, the master device is reset. When the target is hit, the holding jacket melts, after which tungsten cores can penetrate armor. The maximum armor penetration at a distance of 2 km is determined to be 500 mm. With a meeting angle of 60° at the same distance, this characteristic is reduced to 220 mm.

The 3VBM-17 round with the 3BM-42 projectile was put into service in 1986 and significantly influenced the combat qualities of all existing main tanks of the Soviet Army. This product is still used today tank troops and is almost the basis of their arsenals. Subsequently, a modernization was carried out, which consisted of increasing the length of the body and cores. As a result, Mango-M weighs 5 kg and can penetrate up to 270 mm of armor at an angle of 60°.

The long journey of "Lead"

Soon after the appearance of the Mango BOPS, well-known unpleasant events began in our country, affecting a lot of areas, including the development of promising shells for tank guns. Only by the end of the nineties was it possible to obtain real results in the form of another projectile with improved characteristics. This ammunition was the result of development work with the code “Lead”.

Scheme of the product "Mango". Figure Btvt.narod.ru

Existing experience has shown that further growth in the main combat characteristics is associated with a mandatory increase in the length of the projectile. This parameter was increased to 740 mm, but this fact did not allow the future projectile to be used with existing tank automatic loaders. As a result, the next armored vehicle modernization project had to include updating the automation that serves the gun.

From the point of view of the general appearance, the 3VBM-20 shot with the 3BM-46 “Svinets-1” projectile is somewhat similar to the older 3VBM-17 and also consists of a projectile in a burning cylinder and a cartridge case with a metal tray. At the same time, the design of the projectile itself is seriously different from the existing one. This time it was decided to use a monolithic core made of depleted uranium (according to other sources, from a tungsten alloy), which is actually the basis of the projectile. A ballistic cap and tail fins, the diameter of which is smaller than the caliber of the barrel, are attached to the metal core.

An improved drive device was created for the longer projectile. It is distinguished by its large length and the presence of two contact zones. At the front of the device there is a large, familiar-looking cylinder, and the second zone is created by three rear supports. After exiting the barrel, such a driving device is reset and releases the projectile.

"Mango-M" and a cartridge case with a propellant charge. Photo: Btvt.narod.ru

According to available data, Svinets-1 has a mass of 4.6 kg and is capable of accelerating to a speed of 1750 m/s. Due to this, it penetrates up to 650 mm of homogeneous armor at a firing distance of 2000 m and zero impact angle. It is known about the existence of the Lead-2 project, which involved replacing the core with a product made of a different material. Thus, similar shells made of uranium and tungsten could appear in arsenals.

Due to its large length, the new type of projectile could not be used with existing automatic loaders for serial tanks. This problem was solved in the mid-2000s. The T-90A armored vehicles of the new series were equipped with modified machine guns compatible with “long” shells. Subsequently, modernized T-72B3 began to receive similar equipment. Thus, a significant part of the equipment of the armored forces can use not only the relatively old “Mango” with limited characteristics.

"Vacuum" for "Armata"

Observed increase in tank protection characteristics probable enemy is a real challenge for weapons developers. Further research work led to the conclusion that a new increase in the length of the ammunition was necessary. The optimal balance of characteristics could be shown by a BOPS with a length of 1000 mm, but such a projectile, for obvious reasons, could not be used with the 2A46 gun and its automatic loader.

3BM-46 projectile with a leading device. Photo Fofanov.armor.kiev.ua

The way out of this situation was to create a completely new weapon with additional equipment. The promising gun later became known under the symbol 2A82, and the new projectile received the code “Vacuum”. From a certain time, a new weapon system began to be considered in the context of the project for the promising Armata tank. In case of successful completion of work on the tool and BOPS, new tank could receive them as the main weapon.

According to some sources, the Vacuum project was abandoned in favor of new developments. In connection with the beginning of the development of the 2A82-1M gun, instead of such a projectile, it was proposed to create a smaller BOPS with the code “Vacuum-1”. It was supposed to be “only” 900 mm long and equipped with a carbide core. In the recent past, representatives of the defense industry mentioned that organizations from Rosatom were involved in the development of a new projectile. Their participation is due to the need to use depleted uranium.

According to some reports, a projectile called “Vacuum-2” is being created in parallel. In its design, it should be similar to the product with the unit, but at the same time differ in material. It is proposed to be made from a tungsten alloy, more common for domestic BOPS. Also for use with the 2A82-M gun, high-explosive fragmentation ammunition with a controlled detonation with the code "Telnik" and a 3UBK21 "Sprinter" guided missile are being created. Accurate information about the creation of a new 125-mm cumulative projectile is not yet available.

Main tank T-14 with 2A82-1M gun. Photo by NPK "Uralvagonzavod" / uvz.ru

Shape and precise specifications promising BOPS of the “Vacuum” family have not yet been specified. What is known is that a projectile with a uranium core will penetrate about 900-1000 mm of homogeneous armor. It is likely that such characteristics can be obtained with an ideal angle of impact. No other details available.

Promising “Slate”

According to various reports from past years, promising domestically developed tanks were also supposed to receive an armor-piercing projectile called “Stylus”. However, there was not too much information about him, which led to confusion and misconceptions. So, for some time it was believed that the “Grifel” was intended for the new 125 mm guns. It is now known that this product is planned to be used with a more powerful 2A83 gun of 152 mm caliber.

Apparently, the projectile for high-power guns will be similar in appearance to other representatives of its class. It will receive a high elongation core, equipped with a ballistic cap and an armor-piercing damper in the head, as well as a relatively small caliber stabilizer. It was previously reported that the Grifel-1 and Grifel-2 projectiles will be equipped with tungsten and uranium cores. However, there is no data on the armor penetration parameters of the new projectiles.

Models of the 125 mm 2A82-1M gun. Photo: Yuripasholok.livejournal.com

According to various estimates, based on the caliber and estimated energy indicators, the “Leaders” will be able to penetrate at least 1000-1200 mm of homogeneous armor at an optimal impact angle. However, there is information about some characteristic problems in the development of such ammunition. Due to certain objective limitations, the efficiency of using shot energy for 152 mm guns may be lower than for systems of smaller caliber. Whether it will be possible to cope with such problems and fully use the energy reserve of the propellant charge is unknown.

The promising 2A83 tank gun is currently being developed in the context of further development unified tracked platform "Armata". The already created T-14 main tank is equipped with an uninhabited turret with a 2A82-1M gun. In the foreseeable future, it is expected that new version tank, featuring a different fighting compartment and a more powerful 2A83 gun. Along with them, the improved Armata will also receive BOPS from the Grifel line.

Projectiles of the present and future

Currently, the armored forces have several armor-piercing finned sabot shells, designed for use with guns of the rather old but successful 2A46 line. A significant part of the main tanks of existing models have relatively old automatic loading systems, and therefore can only use Mango shells and older products. At the same time, the T-90A tanks of later series, as well as the modernized T-72B3, are equipped with improved automatic loaders, thanks to which they can use relatively long projectiles of the “Lead” line.

The expected appearance of the "Grifel" type BOPS. Drawing by Otvaga2004.mybb.ru

BOPS 3BM-42 and 3BM-46 have fairly high characteristics, and thanks to this they are able to fight a wide range of targets present on the battlefield. At the same time, sub-caliber ammunition is not the only means of combating enemy tanks. For the same purposes, our tanks can be used guided missiles and cumulative shots. Thus, “Mango”, “Svinets” and other tank ammunition provide combat against various targets over a wide range of ranges.

The next generation of Russian tanks, so far represented only by the T-14 Armata, is equipped with the new 2A82-1M gun, which shows higher performance and is compatible with new ammunition. The new family of projectiles and missiles will provide a noticeable increase in combat qualities and is quite capable of bringing the Armata to a leading position in the world.

It is no secret that in the recent past there has been a significant lag between domestic BOPS and modern foreign models. However, the situation is gradually changing, and new models of this kind are entering service. In the foreseeable future, armored units will receive fundamentally new combat vehicles with modern weapons and ammunition. There is every reason to believe that the gap will at least narrow. Moreover, we cannot exclude the possibility of being ahead of foreign competitors with understandable consequences for the combat effectiveness of the army.

Based on materials from sites:
http://vpk.mane/
http://ria.ru/
http://tass.ru/
http://otvaga2004.ru/
http://btvt.narod.ru/
http://russianarms.ru/
http://fofanov.armor.kiev.ua/
http://gurkhan.blogspot.com/
http://bmpd.livejournal.com/

120 mm shots from the Israeli company IMI. In the foreground is an M829 shot (USA), produced by IMI under license

Terminology

Armor-piercing finned sabot shells can be designated by the abbreviations BOPS, OBPS, OPS, BPS. Currently, the abbreviation BPS is also applied to finned sabot arrow-shaped projectiles, although it should correctly be used to designate sub-caliber armor-piercing projectiles of the usual extension for rifled artillery shells. Name of armor-piercing feathers arrow-shaped ammunition applicable to rifled and smoothbore artillery systems.

Device

Ammunition of this type consists of an arrow-shaped, feathered projectile, the body (body) of which (or the core inside the body) is made of durable and high-density material, and the tail of traditional structural alloys. The materials most used for the body include heavy alloys (such as VNZH, etc.), uranium alloys (for example, the American alloy Stabilloy or the domestic analogue such as the UC alloy). The tail is made of aluminum alloys or steel.

Using ring grooves (stampings), the BOPS body is connected to a sector pan made of steel or high-strength aluminum alloys (type V-95, V-96Ts1 and similar). The sector pallet is also called the master device (MU) and consists of three or more sectors. The pallets are fastened to each other by driving belts made of metal or plastic and, in this form, are finally fixed in a metal sleeve or in the body of a burning sleeve. After leaving the gun barrel, the sector pan, under the influence of the oncoming air flow, is separated from the BOPS body, breaking the driving belts, while the projectile body itself continues to fly towards the target. The dropped sectors, having high aerodynamic drag, are slowed down in the air and fall at some distance (from hundreds of meters to more than a kilometer) from the muzzle of the gun. In case of a miss, the BOPS itself, which has low aerodynamic drag, can fly away to a distance of 30 to more than 50 km from the muzzle of the gun.

The designs of modern BOPS are extremely diverse: projectile bodies can be either monolithic or composite (a core or several cores in a shell, as well as longitudinally and transversely multi-layered), tails can be almost equal to the caliber of an artillery gun or sub-caliber, made of steel or light alloys. Master devices (MD) may have different principles for distributing the action vector of gas pressure into sectors (MD of the “expanding” or “clamping” type), different quantities sector locations, made of steel, light alloys, as well as composite materials - for example, carbon composites or aramid composites. Ballistic tips and dampers can be installed in the head parts of BOPS bodies. Additives can be added to the material of tungsten alloy cores to increase the pyrophoricity of the cores. Tracers can be installed in the tail parts of the BOPS.

The mass of BOPS bodies with tails ranges from 3.6 kg in older models to 5-6 kg or more in models for promising tank guns of 140-155 mm caliber.

The diameter of BOPS bodies without fins ranges from 40 mm in old models to 22 mm or less in new promising BOPS with high elongation. The elongation of BOPS is constantly increasing and ranges from 10 to 30 or more.

Cores made of heavy alloys with elongations exceeding 30 are prone to bending deformations when driven along the bore and after separation of the pallet, as well as to destruction when interacting with multi-obstacle and spaced armor. The density of the material is currently limited, since at present in technology there are no materials denser than tungsten and uranium that are practically used for military purposes. The speed of the BOPS is also limited to values in the range of 1500-1800 m/s and depends on the design artillery pieces and ammunition for them. A further increase in speed is associated with research work carried out in the field of throwing projectiles using artillery guns using liquid propellant substances (LPM), with the electrothermochemical method of throwing, with the electrothermal method of throwing, electric (magnetic) method of throwing using railguns, Gauss systems, their combinations, as well as combinations of electrothermochemical and electromagnetic throwing methods. At the same time, an increase in speed above 2000 m/s for many variants of projectile materials leads to a decrease in armor penetration. The reason is the destruction of the projectile upon contact with most types of armor barriers, which ultimately exceeds the increase in armor penetration due to the increase in speed. As such, the projectile's velocity typically increases armor penetration as it increases, while the durability of the armor materials decreases at the same time. The effect in some cases can be cumulative, in others - not, if we are talking about complex armored barriers. For monobarriers, these are often just different names for the same process.

In the USSR and Russia, several types of BOPS are widely known, created at different times and having proper names, which originated from the name/cipher R&D. BOPS are listed below in chronological order from old to new. The structure and material of the BOPS body is briefly indicated:

“Hairclip” 3BM22 - a small tungsten carbide core in the head part of the steel body (1976);
"Nadfil-2" 3BM30 - uranium alloy (1982);
“Nadezhda” 3BM27 - a small tungsten alloy core in the tail of the steel body (1983);
“Vant” 3BM32 - monolithic body made of uranium alloy (1985);
“Mango” 3BM42 - two elongated tungsten alloy cores in a steel body jacket (1986);
“Lead” 3BM48 - monolithic body made of uranium alloy (1991);
"Anker" 3BM39 (1990s);
“Lekalo” 3BM44 M? - improved alloy (details unknown) (1997); perhaps this BOPS is called the “Increased Power Projectile”;
“Svinets-2” - judging by the index, a modified projectile with a uranium core (details unknown).

Other BOPS also have proper names. For example, a 100 mm caliber anti-tank smoothbore gun has “Falshchik” ammunition, a 115 mm tank gun has “Chamberlain” ammunition, etc.

Armor penetration indicators

A comparative assessment of armor penetration indicators is associated with significant difficulties. The assessment of armor penetration indicators is influenced quite different techniques BOPS tests in different countries, lack of a standard type of armor for testing in different countries, different conditions placement of armor (compact or spaced), as well as constant manipulations by developers of all countries with the firing distances of the armor being tested, the angles of installation of the armor before testing, and various statistical methods for processing test results. Homogeneous rolled armor is accepted as a material for testing in Russia and NATO countries; composite targets are used to obtain more accurate results.

According to published data [ ], increasing the elongation of the flight part to a value of 30 made it possible to increase the relative thickness of the pierced rolled homogeneous armor of the RHA standard (ratio of armor thickness to gun caliber, b/d p) to the following values: 5.0 in 105 mm caliber, and 6.8 in 120 caliber mm.

a number of other US

BOPS М829А1 for a 120 mm caliber gun (USA) - 700 mm;
BOPS М829А2- 730 mm;
BOPS М829А3- 765 mm; often mentioned for many years "before 800"
BOPS M829A4 nothing has been announced, outwardly it is quite consistent with its predecessor.

Germany

Of the known BPS of other countries, any record ammunition for last decades at the moment it has not been noticed, which has little to do with the actual state of the situation, especially in the sense of additional data (for example, the number of shells and guns and the security of the carrier).

Story

The emergence of BOPS was associated with the insufficient armor penetration of conventional armor-piercing and sub-caliber projectiles for rifled artillery in the years after World War II. Attempts to increase the specific load (that is, lengthen their core) in sub-caliber projectiles encountered the phenomenon of loss of rotational stabilization when the projectile length increased beyond 6-8 calibers. The strength of modern materials did not allow the angular velocity of rotation of projectiles to be increased any further.

In 1944, for a 210 mm caliber gun for an ultra-long-range railway installation K12(E) German designers created a caliber projectile with a drop-down tail. The length of the projectile was 1500 mm, weight 140 kg. With an initial speed of 1850 m/s, the projectile was supposed to have a flight range of 250 km. A smooth artillery barrel 31 m long was created to fire feathered shells. The shell and gun did not leave the testing stage.

The most famous project that used an ultra-long-range finned sub-caliber projectile was the project of the chief engineer of the Rechling company, Conders. The Conders gun had several names - V-3, “HDP-High Pressure Pump”, “Centipede”, “Hardworking Lizhen”, “Buddy”. The 150 mm multi-chamber gun used a swept-finned sub-caliber projectile weighing in different versions from 80 kg to 127 kg, with an explosive charge from 5 kg to 25 kg. The caliber of the projectile body ranged from 90 mm to 110 mm. Different variants The shells contained from 4 folding to 6 permanent stabilizer feathers. The elongation of some projectile models reached 36. A shortened modification of the LRK 15F58 gun fired a 15-cm-Sprgr swept projectile. 4481, designed at Peenemünde, and saw action, firing at Luxembourg, Antwerp and the US 3rd Army. At the end of the war, one gun was captured by the Americans and taken to the United States.

Feathered anti-tank gun shells

In 1944, the Rheinmetall company created a smooth-bore anti-tank artillery gun 8N63 80 mm caliber, firing feathered cumulative projectile weighing 3.75 kg with an explosive charge of 2.7 kg. The developed guns and shells were used in combat until the end of World War II.

In the same year, the Krupp company created a smooth-bore anti-tank gun P.W.K. 10.H.64 caliber 105 mm. The gun fired a feathered cumulative projectile weighing 6.5 kg. The projectile and gun did not leave the testing stage.

Experiments were carried out on the use of high-velocity arrow-shaped sub-caliber projectiles of the Tsp-Geschoss type (from the German Treibspiegelgeschoss - a sub-caliber projectile with a pallet) for anti-tank warfare (see below “arrow-shaped projectiles of anti-aircraft guns”). According to unconfirmed reports, German developers at the end of the war experimented with the use of natural uranium in sub-caliber finned projectiles, which ended in vain due to the insufficient strength of unalloyed uranium. However, even then the pyrophoric nature of uranium cores was noted.

Anti-aircraft gun projectiles

Experiments with arrow-shaped finned sabot projectiles for high-altitude anti-aircraft artillery were carried out at a training ground near the Polish city of Blizna under the leadership of designer R. Herman ( R. Hermann). Anti-aircraft guns of 103 mm caliber with a barrel length of up to 50 calibers were tested. During the tests, it turned out that arrow-shaped finned projectiles, which reached very high speeds due to their insignificant mass, had insufficient fragmentation effect due to the impossibility of placing a significant explosive charge in them. [ ] In addition, they demonstrated extremely low accuracy due to the thin air at high altitudes and, as a result, insufficient aerodynamic stabilization. After it became apparent that swept-finned projectiles were not suitable for anti-aircraft fire, attempts were made to use high-velocity sabot-finned projectiles to combat tanks. Work was stopped due to the fact that serial anti-tank and tank guns at that time had sufficient armor penetration, and the Third Reich was living its last days.

Arrow-shaped handgun bullets

Arrow-shaped bullets for hand firearms were first developed by AAI designer Irwin Bahr.

The companies "AAI", "Springfield", "Winchester" designed various arrow-shaped bullets, having an arrow mass of 0.68-0.77 grams, with an arrow body diameter of 1.8-2.5 mm with stamped tail. The initial speed of arrow-shaped bullets varied depending on their type from 900 m/s to 1500 m/s.

The recoil impulse of the rifles when firing arrow-shaped ammunition was several times lower than that of the M16 rifle. During the period from 1989 to 1989, the United States tested many modifications of arrow-shaped ammunition and special weapons under it, but the expected advantages over conventional jacketed bullets (both medium and small caliber) were not achieved. Arrow-shaped bullets of low mass and caliber with a high trajectory flatness, had insufficient accuracy and insufficient lethal effect at medium and long distances. grain) (19.958 g) in a detachable pan. With an initial velocity of a swept bullet of 1450 m/s, the muzzle energy of a sniper gun is 20,980 J. At a distance of 800 meters, a sub-caliber feathered arrow made of tungsten alloy pierces an armor plate 40 mm thick when hitting at an angle of 30°; when firing at a distance of 1 km, the maximum excess of the trajectory above the aiming line is only 80 cm.

Hunting arrow-shaped bullets

Most types of long bullets for hunting smoothbore weapons They have an aerodynamic principle of flight stabilization and belong to arrow-shaped (arrow-shaped) projectiles. Due to the slight elongation of conventional hunting bullets in most models (1.3-2.5 and even less (for example, the Mayer bullet, which is also stabilized not by a turbine, but by a lancet method)), the shootiness (sweptness) of hunting bullets is not visually obvious.

The Russian Zenit bullets (designed by D.I. Shiryaev) and foreign Sovestra bullets currently have the most pronounced arrow-shaped shape. For example, some types of Sovestra bullets have an elongation of up to 4.6-5, and some types of Shiryaev bullets have an elongation of more than 10. Both arrow-shaped feathered bullets with a large elongation differ from other hunting lancet bullets in their high accuracy of fire.

Arrow-shaped feathered bullets of underwater weapons

In Russia, underwater ammunition of an arrow-shaped (needle-shaped) shape without fins is being developed, which is part of the SPS cartridges of 4.5 mm caliber (for special underwater pistol SPP-1; SPP-1M) and MPS cartridges of 5.66 mm caliber (for special underwater assault rifle APS). Unfeathered arrow-shaped bullets for underwater weapons, stabilized in water by a cavitation cavity, are practically not stabilized in the air and require special, rather than standard, weapons for use under water.

Currently, the most promising underwater aerial ammunition, which can be fired with equal efficiency both underwater at a depth of 50 m and in the air, are cartridges for standard (serial) machine guns and assault rifles, equipped with a Polotnev arrow-shaped feathered bullet, developed at the Federal State Unitary Enterprise "TsNIIKhM". Stabilization of Polotnev's bullets under water is carried out by a cavitation cavity, and in air - by the tail of the bullet.

ISBN 978-5-9524-3370-0; BBK 63.3(0)62 K59.

Hogg Ya. Ammunition: cartridges, grenades, artillery shells, mortar mines. - M.: Eksmo-Press, 2001.
Irving D. Weapons of retribution. - M.: Tsentrpoligraf, 2005.
Dornberger V. VAU-2. - M.: Tsentrpoligraf, 2004.
Katorin Yu. F., Volkovsky N. L., Tarnavsky V. V. Unique and paradoxical military equipment. - St. Petersburg. : Polygon, 2003. - 686 p. - (Military History Library). - ISBN 5-59173-238-6, UDC 623.4, BBK 68.8 K 29.

The term "sub-caliber projectile" is most often used in tank forces. These types of shells are used along with cumulative and high-explosive fragmentation shells. But if earlier there was a division into armor-piercing and sub-caliber ammunition, now it makes sense to talk only about armor-piercing sub-caliber projectiles. Let's talk about what a sub-caliber is and what its key features and principle of operation are.

basic information

The key difference between sub-caliber shells and conventional armored shells is that the diameter of the core, that is, the main part, is smaller than the caliber of the gun. At the same time, the second main part - the pallet - is made according to the diameter of the gun. The main purpose of such ammunition is to defeat heavily armored targets. Usually this heavy tanks and fortified buildings.

It is worth noting that the armor-piercing sabot projectile has increased penetration due to its high initial flight speed. The specific pressure when breaking through armor has also been increased. To do this, it is advisable to use materials that have the highest possible specific gravity as a core. Tungsten and depleted uranium are suitable for these purposes. Stabilization of the projectile's flight is achieved by fins. There is nothing new here, since the principle of flight of an ordinary arrow is used.

Armor-piercing sub-caliber projectile and its description

As we noted above, such ammunition is ideal for shooting at tanks. It is interesting that the sub-caliber does not have the usual fuse and explosive. The principle of operation of the projectile is entirely based on its kinetic energy. If you compare it, it is something similar to a massive high-velocity bullet.

The subcaliber consists of a reel body. A core is inserted into it, which is often 3 times smaller than the caliber of the gun. High-strength metal-ceramic alloys are used as core material. If previously it was tungsten, today depleted uranium is more popular for a number of reasons. During the shot, the entire load is taken by the pallet, thereby ensuring the initial flight speed. Since the weight of such a projectile is less than that of a conventional armor-piercing projectile, by reducing the caliber it was possible to achieve an increase in flight speed. We are talking about significant values. Thus, a finned sabot projectile flies at a speed of 1,600 m/s, while a classic armor-piercing projectile flies at 800-1,000 m/s.

The effect of a sub-caliber projectile

Quite interesting is how such ammunition works. During contact with the armor, it creates a small diameter hole in it due to high kinetic energy. Part of the energy is spent on destroying the target’s armor, and projectile fragments scatter into the armored space. Moreover, the trajectory is similar to a diverging cone. This leads to the machinery and equipment breaking down and the crew being injured. What is most important, due to high degree Due to the pyrophoricity of depleted uranium, numerous fires occur, which in most cases leads to the complete failure of the combat unit. We can say that the sub-caliber projectile, the principle of operation of which we have examined, has increased armor penetration at long distances. Evidence of this is Operation Desert Storm, when the US Armed Forces used sub-caliber ammunition and hit armored targets at a distance of 3 km.

Types of PB shells

Currently, several effective designs of sub-caliber projectiles have been developed, which are used by the armed forces of various countries. In particular, we are talking about the following:

With non-detachable tray. The projectile travels the entire path to the target as a single whole. Only the core is involved in penetration. This solution has not received sufficient distribution due to increased aerodynamic drag. As a result, the indicator of armor penetration and accuracy drops significantly with the distance to the target.
With non-detachable tray for conical implement. The essence of this solution is that when passing along a conical barrel, the pallet is crushed. This reduces aerodynamic drag.
A sub-caliber projectile with a detachable tray. The point is that the pallet is torn off by air forces or centrifugal forces (with a rifled gun). This allows you to significantly reduce air resistance in flight.

About cumulative

Such ammunition was first used by Nazi Germany in 1941. At that time, the USSR did not expect the use of such shells, since their principle of operation was known, but they were not yet in service. The key feature of such projectiles was that they had high armor penetration due to the presence of instantaneous fuses and a cumulative notch. The problem encountered for the first time was that the projectile rotated during its flight. This led to the dispersion of the cumulative arrow and, as a result, reduced armor penetration. In order to exclude negative effect, it was proposed to use smoothbore guns.

Some interesting facts

It is worth noting that it was in the USSR that arrow-shaped armor-piercing sub-caliber projectiles were developed. This was a real breakthrough, as it was possible to increase the length of the core. Almost no armor protected against a direct hit from such ammunition. Only a successful angle of inclination of the armor plate and, consequently, its increased thickness in the reduced state could help out. In the end, BOPS had such an advantage as flat trajectory flight range up to 4 km and high accuracy.

Conclusion

A cumulative sabot projectile is somewhat similar to a conventional sabot projectile. But in its body it has a fuse and an explosive. When penetrating armor, such ammunition provides a destructive effect on both equipment and manpower. Currently, the most common shells for cannons are 115, 120, 125 mm, as well as artillery shells 90, 100 and 105 mm. In general, this is all the information on this topic.