The
trajectory-correctable shells might take the medium price niche.
MOSCOW, September 28.
/TASS/. Russia’s research and industrial concern Techmash (an affiliate of
Rostech) is working on the concept of a new 152-millimeter correctable
trajectory shell for artillery pieces, the concern’s deputy CEO Alexander
Kochkin said adding that the project had no name yet.
"Currently we
are the drafting terms of reference and image of this new type of ammunition. I
reckon we will get down to research and development in the near future. It will
be a new 152-millimeter correctable trajectory shell for artillery pieces. The
project has no name yet," he said.
As follows from
Kochkin’s explanations, once out of the artillery barrel the new shell will follow
an ordinary ballistic flight path most of the time. Near the target the
built-in control system will be activated to correct the trajectory.
Kochkin remarked that
equipping artillery shells with such control systems would be a rather tricky
task due to the high dynamic impacts the shell is subject to at the moment of
firing, in the process of rotation inside the artillery barrel and in flight.
"At high
rotation speeds, up to 30,000 rounds per minute, optical instruments are
useless. The image is blurry. Solving this problem will be a rather tricky
task," he added.
Several means of
correcting the flight path in the final phase were being considered, including
flight control surfaces and miniaturized jet engines.
He speculated that
the trajectory-correctable shells might take the medium price niche.
"They will be
cheaper than guided shells of the Krasnopol type, but more expensive than
ordinary shells," he said. Research into the new type of ammunition is
absent from the state program for armaments, so Techmash will push ahead with
research at its own expense.
Soviet predecessor
According to open
sources, the V.V. Bakhirev Research and Machine-Building Institute created a
correctable trajectory 152-millimeter artillery shell. It was certified and
used by Soviet troops in Afghanistan.
The shell flew most
of the distance to the target as an ordinary artillery ammunition piece. The
homing system was activated 600 meters away from the target, spotted by the
laser target finder. The shell’s trajectory was fine-tuned with impulse
thrusters.
