AHEAD ammunition explained

Advanced hit efficiency and destruction (AHEAD) ammunition[1] is a type of airburst round ammunition that releases a cloud of sub-projectiles just ahead of a target, enabling it to engage conventional as well as low, slow and small (LSS) air threats including unmanned aerial vehicles and perform counter rocket, artillery, and mortar duties. The 35 mm variety produced by Oerlikon Contraves splits each projectile into 152 tungsten[2] submunitions "that form a cone-shaped pattern to destroy a target's control surfaces and other vital components".[3] This type of ammunition is listed as an official acronym at the British Ministry of Defence.[4]

Types

There were, in 2017, four types of 35 mm AHEAD ammunition:[5]

History

AHEAD ammunition was developed as early as 1993.[6]

In 2011, the government of the Republic of China in Taiwan procured itself a Skyguard system, which is based on the AHEAD ammunition.[7]

In 2012, AHEAD was delivered to the German Air Force by Rheinmetall for their MANTIS Air Defence System.[8]

At the 2018 Euronaval trade show, the Rheinmetall Oerlikon Millennium Gun was noted as able to fire AHEAD ammunition.[9]

In 2018, AHEAD ammunition-capable Oerlikon revolver guns were proposed to the Egyptian Ministry of Defense by the manufacturer, in order to update its air defense system.[10]

In January 2019, the South African Defence Force boasted about its upgraded ability to fire AHEAD ammunition at airborne targets via a networked multi-gun emplacement.[11]

In March 2021, Rheinmetall Air Defence unveiled the Skyranger 30, an air defense turret that uses a 30 mm gun firing a 30 mm version of the AHEAD projectile.[12]

In June 2021, Rheinmetall tested its 35 mm revolver gun against drone swarms with the use of AHEAD ammunition. Firing PMD 428 rounds,[13] [14] an eight-drone swarm was neutralized with an 18-round burst, most of them being destroyed with the first six rounds.[15] In mid-2022, AHEAD was the subject of study by a group of Chinese scientists.[16]

In August 2022, the munitions were listed on the scrapped purchase order for the towed air defence gun missile systems (ADGMS) of the Indian Ministry of Defence.[17] It seemed the matter excited some controversy around this time.[18]

In October 2022, the munitions were listed as one of the technical requirements for a gun that would be procured by the Indian MoD.[19]

Notes and References

  1. Chand. Naresh. 2013. Future Trends in Army Air Defence Systems. SP's Land Forces. 5. 28 April 2023.
  2. https://www.rheinmetall.com/en/products/medium-calibre/medium-calibre-ammunition
  3. 3 May 2005. U.S. Navy Completes Initial Testing of Lockheed Martin Naval Gun. Lockheed Martin. 28 April 2023.
  4. Web site: 15 August 2014. Ministry of Defence acronyms and abbreviations. gov.uk. 28 April 2023.
  5. Web site: German weapon exports. World Defense.
  6. April 1993 . Shotgun Bullets. Popular Mechanics. 170. 4. 21. 28 April 2023.
  7. News: Cole. J. Michael. 28 December 2011. Air Force upgrading 'Skyguard' system. Taipei Times. 1. 28 April 2023.
  8. Web site: 26 November 2012. Rheinmetall delivers Mantis air defence system to German Air Force. Airforce Technology. 28 April 2023.
  9. Web site: Vavasseur. Xavier. 22 October 2018. Euronaval 2018: Which Naval Guns and Missiles for FLOTLOG ?. Navy Recognition. 28 April 2023.
  10. Valpolini. Paolo. 3 December 2018. Rheinmetall proposal for Egyptian GBAD. EDR Magazine. 28 April 2023.
  11. 29 January 2019. Keeping the skies safe - 35 mm Air Defence Artillery logistic support. Sigma Logistic Solutions. defenceWeb. 28 April 2023.
  12. Valpolini. Paolo. 3 March 2021. Rheinmetall Air Defence unveils its Skyranger 30 (upgraded). EDR Magazine. 28 April 2023.
  13. Boguslavsky. Eyal. 14 July 2021. Rheinmetall tests Revolver Gun against drone swarms. Israel Defense. 28 April 2023.
  14. Web site: Fiorenza. Nicholas. 9 July 2021. Rheinmetall tests Revolver Gun Mk 3 against UAV swarms. Janes. 28 April 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20210712103747/https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/rheinmetall-tests-revolver-gun-mk-3-against-uav-swarms. 12 July 2021. live.
  15. Valpolini. Paolo. 1 July 2022. Countering RAM, drones and other flying objects with highly mobile assets, Rheinmetall's solutions. EDR Magazine. 28 April 2023.
  16. Wang. Ge . Zhang. Chun . Lin. Zhiwei . Wang. Baohua . Tan. Hu . Chen. Chen. June 2022. zh:多束定向预制破片弹开舱距离研究. Research on's Opening Distance of AHEAD Ammunition . Acta Armamentarii . zh . 43. S1 . 115–120. 1000-1093 . 10.12382/bgxb.2022.A001.
  17. Web site: Bedi. Rahul . 27 August 2022. Indian Army's Persistent Penchant for 'Marvel Comics Weaponry' Has Again Cost it Dear. The Wire. 28 April 2023.
  18. Chand. Naresh. 17 July 2021. Air Defence Gun Systems - Light at the end of the Barrel. SP's MAI. 28 April 2023.
  19. Web site: 7 October 2022. Request for Proposal by Ministry of Defence Government of India for Procurement of Quantity 220 Air Defence Guns and 141576 Rounds Ammunition (37,440 Advanced and 1,04,136 Standard Rounds of Ammunition). mod.gov.in. 28 April 2023.

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