35 × 228 mm AHEAD ammunition

Boeing Company Bushmaster III (USA); GMD-A twin 35 mm naval mounting (Switzerland); 35/1000 revolver cannon; Millenium 35/1000 naval gun system (UK); SkyShield 35 ; Skoda 35 mm SPAAG ( Czech Republic ). NORINCO of China manufactures the Twin 35 mm Towed AA Gun System, a licence-produced version of the Oerlikon Contraves GDF-002 . Development The codename AHEAD (Advanced Hit Efficiency And Destruction), refers to a new generation of 35 × 228 mm ammunition. It was intended to expand the defensive capability of medium calibre air defence guns in response to the anticipated threat from precision-guided munitions, missiles and other high-technology weaponry. Although originally developed for the 35 mm calibre the concept could be expanded to other calibres. The AHEAD concept also has applications against armoured land targets such as APCs and similar vehicles. Development of the AHEAD concept by Oerlikon Contraves Pyrotec AG commenced during the late 1980s, with the first public presentation of the concept being given in mid-1991. By October 1992, the first firing demonstration was given, followed by a further live firing demonstration against towed air targets in September 1993. More successful live firing demonstrations against drone targets followed. AHEAD is fully developed and in production, available for use with the 35/1000 revolver cannon which is part of the Oerlikon Contraves SkyShield 35 air defence system and the Millenium 35/1000 naval air defence system. During 1996, Canada became the first NATO customer for AHEAD, when it acquired upgrade kits for its 20 GDF-005 air defence guns; with the Canadian air defence batteries it was initially intended that AHEAD ammunition will replace HEI in the air defence role. Oman is known to be another AHEAD user. The AHEAD round remains one of the ammunition types under consideration for use with the South African Denel 35DPG dual-purpose naval gun. AHEAD ammunition is also proposed for use with the Czech Skoda 35 mm SPAAG on a TATRA T815 8 × 8 wheeled chassis; this system carries an unmanned mounting similar to that used by the Oerlikon Contraves SkyShield 35 . Trials have been held to determine the effects of AHEAD ammunition on armoured ground targets. Oerlikon Contraves Pyrotec AG have proposed that AHEAD technologies could form part of future modernisation programmes involving both air defence and ground-to-ground 30 mm cannon systems. See entry on the 30 × 173 mm Air Brusting Munition (ABM) in the Cannon section. AHEAD technology is also involved in the time-fuze system employed with the 40 mm Air Bursting Munition System (ABMS) for a wide range of 40 mm automatic high-velocity grenade launchers. The ABMS is produced by Singapore Technologies Kinetics (ST Kinetics). Oerlikon Contraves, including Oerlikon Contraves Pyrotec AG, is now a member of Rheinmetall DeTec AG . Description 35 mm AHEAD rounds are fixed, as other 35 × 228 mm Oerlikon ammunition and are handled and loaded in the same way. The 35 × 228 mm AHEAD round, Oerlikon designation PMD062, uses a heavy metal payload projectile with a programmable base fuze. The fuze contains an advanced high-precision timer that will detonate a forward firing ejection charge according to how it is programmed. The timer is programmed after it has passed through a triple-coil muzzle velocity gauge as the projectile leaves the gun muzzle. Muzzle safety for the projectile is more than 60 m. As the projectile passes through the first two coils, set 100 mm apart, its exact velocity is determined and processed together with target information supplied by the fire-control system computer. The exact projectile flying time is calculated to thousandths of a second and imparted by electro-induction to the programmable base fuze as the projectile passes through a third coil. The high-precision time module in the fuze will then signal the fuze to function and detonate the less than 1 g ejection charge at a given distance in front of the target, forming a cone of 152 tungsten alloy subprojectile pellets which are directed towards the target. One 25-round burst can produce a `swarm' containing 3,800 tungsten alloy pellets covering an expected target position. If the fuze fails to function for any reason, it will self-destruct after 8.19 seconds, an equivalent range of approximately 5,000 m. The spin-stabilised subprojectiles (the spin rate is about 1,000 rps) were design calculated to be capable of defeating any missile, drone or remotely piloted vehicle by kinetic energy alone, whatever front-end armour they might possess. Each cylindrical tungsten alloy subprojectile weighs 3.3 g. The complete payload is stacked in eight layers, with each layer containing 19 subprojectiles. A practice round with a totally inert projectile is available for gun testing. Authorised fuzes ET - integral, see text Equivalent rounds CANADA CANADA Manufacturer SNC TEC Type: AHEAD C141 Description: Standard specifications.