What is a APFSDS shell?
Armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS), long dart penetrator, or simply dart ammunition, is a type of kinetic energy penetrator ammunition used to attack modern vehicle armor.
What ammo can pierce a tank?
SILVER BULLET made from depleted uranium can pierce even the heaviest armor. Uranium shells burn away at the edges upon impact¿a “self-sharpening” that helps them bore into armor. Used as ammunition, it penetrates the thick steel encasing enemy tanks; used as armor, it protects troops against attack.
How heavy is a 120mm APFSDS shell?
Thus, a round of 120 mm Rheinmetall APFSDS ammunition has a mass of 19.8 kg, which is little more than the 18 kg mass of a typical 105 mm APFSDS round with the traditional metallic cartridge case.
What angle does APFSDS shatter?
Modern APFSDS rarely ever deflect – it requires an impact angle of less than about 15° (or more than 85°, if measured from the surface normal) to have a decent chance for a deflection.
What round do tanks shoot?
The most common rounds in use today are a high explosive anti-tank (HEAT), armor piercing fin stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS), high explosive squash head (HESH), and high explosive (HE). Below is a picture of what the US Abrams tank uses (m828, and 829A1 are APFSDS).
What is APFSDS made of?
The M829A4 is a fifth-generation APFSDS-T cartridge consisting of depleted-uranium penetrator with a three-petal composite sabot; the penetrator includes a low-drag fin with a tracer, and a windshield and tip assembly.
How much can APFSDS penetrate?
So instead of having some mind-boggling penetration (for an APFSDS fired with the short L/44 barrel) against all types of armor, the penetration against RHS/composite armor might be as low as ~660 to 700 mm; enough to defeat the main armor of tanks like the T-80U, T-90 and Type 99.
How much does an APFSDS cost?
M829E3 120-MM APFSDS-T CARTRIDGE
| Army ACAT II Program | Prime Contractor | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Number of Systems: | 65,000 | Alliant Techsystems |
| Total Program Cost (TY$): | $481.6M | |
| Average Unit Cost (TY$): | $5K | |
| Full-rate production: | FY03 |
How much does an Apfsds cost?
How much can Apfsds penetrate?
What can stop APFSDS?
Modern armor can beat APFSDS rounds. There have been instances where modern MBTs like the Abrams and Challenger II cannot defeat their own armor (out of an attempt to destroy disabled vehicles), but friendly fire incidents have also occured, so it’s not impossible.
What is the most common tank round?
What country invented APFSDS?
Germans
As the original developers of the 120mm smoothbore gun that armed the Leopard 2 and M1A1 Abrams, Germans developed a series of advanced APFSDS rounds for this gun. Unlike the Russians and Americans, all German rounds are made out of tungsten, as depleted uranium was seen as too dangerous to health to utilize.