30 mm caliber
This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2011) |
The 30 mm caliber is a range of autocannon ammunition. It includes the NATO standardized Swiss 30×173mm (STANAG 4624), the Soviet 30×155mmB, 30×165mm and 30×210mmB, the Czechoslovak 30×210mm, the Yugoslav 30×192mm, the British 30×113mmB, and the French 30×150mmB and 30×170mm cartridges.
Usage
Ammunition in 30 mm is typically not used against personnel but rather as an anti-materiel or armor-piercing round. Rounds of this size can be effective against lightly armored vehicles as well as fortified bunkers. It is also a popular caliber for shipboard close-in weapons systems (CIWS), such as the Russian AK-630 and Dutch Goalkeeper CIWS. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation use their 30 mm weapons in a variety of vehicles, including the Su-25 attack aircraft, Mi-24 helicopter, Mi-28 attack helicopter, Ka-50 attack helicopter, and the BMP-2, BMP-3, and BTR-90 infantry fighting vehicles. The most modern anti-aircraft gun systems in use by Russia are chambered in 30 mm. The U.S. military uses 30 mm weapons in their A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack aircraft, AC-130 gunship (AC-130J Ghostrider variant), and AH-64 Apache attack helicopter. It was going to be used in the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle, until the project was canceled. The United States Navy uses 30 mm weapons on the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock and on Freedom and Independence-class littoral combat ships as part of the surface warfare (SuW) package.[1][2] In 2012, the Navy decided to replace the Mk 110 57 mm cannons on Zumwalt-class destroyers with the Mk 46 GWS (Gun Weapon System), a navalized mounting of the Mk44 Bushmaster chain gun.[3][4] In 2022, the United States Coast Guard announced plans to install 30 mm Mk44 chain guns on newly-built Polar Security Cutters (PSCs), though existing cutters would retain their 25mm Mark 38 mounts.[5]
Types of ammunition
30 mm calibre weapons are used in a variety of roles. As a result, ammunition in 30 mm comes in several varieties: armor-piercing (AP), high-explosive (HE), airburst, and target practice (TP) rounds. Both AP and HE cartridges commonly possess incendiary or tracer elements, which may be noted in its designation; API and HE-T are Armor-Piercing Incendiary and High-Explosive Tracer respectively.[6]
Weapons
- Examples of 30 mm rounds and cannons
-
Swiss 30×173mm
-
Soviet 30×165mm
-
The DU penetrator of a 30×173 mm round used in the GAU-8
-
French 30×150mmB
-
30×113mmB rounds being loaded into an AH-64D Apache Longbow
Current weapons
.png){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
Historical weapons
.svg){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
See also
- 20 mm caliber
- 23 mm caliber
- 25 mm caliber
- 37 mm caliber
- 40 mm grenade
- Table of handgun and rifle cartridges
References
- ↑ Mk-46 GWS Archived 2 November 2014 at the Wayback Machine - Seaforces.org
- ↑ Navy Orders Six More General Dynamics Littoral Combat Ship MK46 Mod 2 Gun Weapon Systems Archived 2 November 2014 at the Wayback Machine - Guns.com, 21 March 2013
- ↑ Navy Swaps Out Anti-Swarm Boat Guns on DDG-1000s Archived 31 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine - News.USNI.org, 5 August 2014
- ↑ "MK 46 - 30 mm Gun Weapon System > United States Navy > Displayy-FactFiles". 2024-07-10. Archived from the original on 2024-07-10. Retrieved 2024-08-02.
- ↑ Ong, Peter (2022-04-21). "USGC's Polar Security Cutters to Receive Mark 38 Mod 4 Guns". Naval News. Archived from the original on 2023-01-30. Retrieved 2022-04-24.
- ↑ "Medium calibre ammunition". rheinmetall.com. Rheinmetall. Retrieved 26 September 2023.