Today, the tank acts as the main firepower of modern armies. And the one who can create favorable conditions in a duel to hit an enemy tank always wins. The firing range is of decisive importance, because it allows you to fire at the enemy from cover or out of reach.
Forces reducing flight range
Currently, design engineers are developing more and more new models to increase the firing range of modern tanks. But no matter how hard they try, it will not be possible to completely eliminate the factors that reduce the range of the projectile.
In theory, if the projectile were not affected by external forces during the flight, then it would fly in a straight line. But under the influence of gravity, it is attracted to the ground, loses its original speed and flight range, changes its trajectory to a parabola.
In addition, for anythe air resistance force acts on the flying body, which not only reduces the flight speed, but also tends to overturn the projectile, to give it a vertical rotational motion. By reducing the influence of these factors, it is possible to ensure that the maximum range of the tank will become longer.
Main ways to increase firing range
To reduce the effect of gravity, you can resort to only one way - to reduce the weight of a tank projectile. Measures to reduce weight are extremely rare, because the penetrating ability of the head also depends on it.
Reducing the force of air resistance to the projectile give a special streamlined shape, which improves its aerodynamic properties. The head is sharpened, and the waist part is beveled at a certain angle. To eliminate the tipping of the flying ammunition, it is given its own rotational motion.
To make the projectile rotate around its own axis, special spiral channels are cut in the barrel before being installed on the tank. At the same time, the firing range increases, but another problem appears - derivation, or the deviation of the projectile to the right or left of the line of fire.
The direction of displacement in the vertical axis depends on the direction of twisting of the channels inside the barrel. If they go up to the right, then the flying projectile will deviate to the right side, and when aiming, the gunner needs to take lead to the left.
Airspeed and trajectory
There is another factor thataffects the flight range - the initial speed of the projectile. Accordingly, the lower the initial acceleration, the closer the enemy tank should be. The firing range also depends on the throwing angles, which, in turn, are again determined by the initial speed. The more meters per second the core overcomes during the flight, the smaller the angle must be set to hit the target.
All of the above factors - derivation, angle of throw, initial flight force - set the trajectory of the projectile. The main task facing engineers at this stage in the development of tank technology is to give the projectile a more direct glide path - a vertical flight line. Now it is a parabola.
Effective range
They call one main indicator of the effectiveness of guns that are installed on anti-tank guns and on a tank - the firing range of a direct shot, that is, the distance that the projectile will fly, deviating from the vertical trajectory by a distance not exceeding the height of the target being hit. Speaking directly about tanks, the height of the glide path should be no more than 2 meters.
In order to improve the defense of positions, to make it more stable, it is necessary first of all to increase the range of a direct shot. Increasing the distance at which effective fire can be conducted on enemy vehicles, combined with the massive use of tank guns, makes it possible to increase the effectiveness of defense.
Engineers-designers are trying to increase the initial speed of the projectile so that the effective range of the tank becomes higher. The indicator of the effective fire distance is in direct proportion to the initial acceleration of the ammunition - it is ten to twenty percent higher than the initial "swiftness". For example, at a speed of 1000 m/s, the flight range will be 1100-1200 meters.
Projectile dispersion
The strength of the projectile from the muzzle of the tank also affects the flight time - the higher the acceleration rate, the less time the core will spend in the air. This is essential when shooting at moving targets, reducing the number of errors made when the trajectory is incorrectly predicted.
The effectiveness of shooting is also affected by the dispersion of shells - the average area of impact of each shot fired at the target. The deviation of the cannonball hit from the aiming point increases with the distance to the target. This happens under the influence of various factors, including Coriolis acceleration. There is no way to completely eliminate scattering.
Firing range
At this stage in the development of military equipment, engineers are introducing various means that allow you to hit enemy forces at a distance of up to 10 km or more. It is impossible to say exactly what the firing range of the tank, which is in service with each individual army, is different for each model.
To increase the flight range, designers not only use the methods listed above, but alsocreate new means of firing. Now there are two main types of such tools:
- ATGM - anti-tank guided missile, part of the armament of most tanks and anti-tank systems, used to have the abbreviation ATGM - anti-tank guided missile.
- BOPS is an armor-piercing feathered sub-caliber projectile that is stabilized in the air not due to rotation around its own axis, but due to aerodynamic solutions.
So, for example, the range of the T-90 tank with ATGM guns is about 5000 meters, and you can fire to kill with BOPS guns at a distance of 0.1 km.
Armament of the T-90 tank
The main gun of the T-90 tank is represented by a 125 mm smoothbore cannon, which is paired with a machine gun mount and mounted on trunnions, providing greater flexibility when aiming at a target. The stabilization system is represented by the Jasmine design. The new gun has high firing accuracy, fast reloading - about 6.5 seconds due to the automatic loader.
One of the exceptional features of the weapon is the ability to fire guided missiles. The firing range of the T-90 tank with ATGM guns is 5 km. This is ensured by modern designs of both guidance systems and the missile itself.
The missile control complex is represented by a laser guidance channel with a ballistic computer, an automated control unit and the shots themselves, whichproduced by guided missiles for tank guns. The presented engineering solutions make it possible to hit both stationary targets and those moving at speeds over 70 km/h with an accuracy of over 60%.
Armament of the T-80 tank
The T-80 tank became famous for being the world's first combat vehicle with a gas turbine engine. It allowed to reduce the time of preparing the machine for further operation. Due to the fact that now the engine did not need to warm up, the car could:
- Start driving immediately in positive temperatures.
- Proceed to redeploy 2-3 minutes after starting the power plant at an ambient temperature of -18 degrees Celsius.
- Start driving in 20-30 minutes in harsher weather conditions.
Currently an obsolete model, but is still in service in some countries. It was developed in 1976. The main gun is represented by a 125 mm 2A46-1 cannon.
The firing range of the T-80 tank from the main gun is about 3700 meters. At the beginning of its production, it was not equipped with guided missiles. Subsequent modifications of the equipment acquired ATGM installations, and the range of the missiles was about 5 kilometers.
Armament of the T-64 tank
The main battle tank T-64 was produced in the 70-80s of the last century. Despite its advanced age, this technique boasts solid characteristics. The main firepower of the machine is represented by a smoothbore 125 mma cannon that can fire 4 types of projectiles - sub-caliber, cumulative, high-explosive fragmentation and guided missiles.
Reflected the performance characteristics of the T-64 tank, the firing range of its weapons. ATGM guns can hit a target at a distance of more than 10,000 meters. The anti-aircraft system, represented by a 12.7 mm belt-fed machine gun, can hit a target in the air at a distance of up to 1.5 km. The guns deliver accurate strikes on both stationary and moving targets.
In order for the firing range of the T-64 tank to be more effective, there are several optical means in the cockpit at the disposal of the vehicle captain and gunner. The devices are equipped with a 9x optical zoom and a night target recognition system. Despite its considerable age, the machine is in service with many countries of the world.
