Guided missiles and missiles for main battle tanks

39
A modern main battle tank is capable of using not only shells, but also guided weapons of various types. The combat effectiveness of an armored vehicle can be increased with the help of guided missiles or missile systems with the launch of a rocket through a gun. Systems of this kind provide an increase in the range and accuracy of fire, which increases the likelihood of hitting a target. Guided weapons have long taken their place in the field of tanks, and we should expect further development of this direction.


A shot with the 9M112 rocket of the Cobra complex in the cell of the T-64 MBT loading mechanism. Wikimedia Commons Photos




Missile systems


In the sixties, progress in the field of anti-tank missile systems led to the idea of ​​launching a rocket through the barrel of a gun. A few years later, the first samples of such complexes of guided weapons of the tank (KUVT) appeared. To date, a number of tanks produced in different countries can use guided missiles launched through the barrel of the main gun. New KWTTs are being developed.

The most famous are KUVT developed by the USSR. The design of such systems began in the late sixties, and in the middle of the next decade, the first domestic tank KUVT 9K112 "Cobra" entered service. Subsequently, several other systems of a similar class were created, characterized by enhanced characteristics. All Soviet tank KUVTs were designed for the 2A46 cannon-launcher with a caliber of 125 mm. Accordingly, they could be installed on all domestic MBTs, starting with the T-64B.

The Cobra KWT was built around an 9M112 rocket with a length of 968 mm and a body diameter of 125 mm, with folding planes. A semi-automatic guidance was used, in which the tank control devices monitored the rocket along the direction finder and issued commands over the air. Provided firing at a range of up to 4 km. Penetration - up to 700 mm.

Guided missiles and missiles for main battle tanks
9K119 KUVT Reflex elements (from top to bottom): 9X119 missile, 9X949 missile launcher, and ZUBK14 full assembly. Photo Rbase.new-factoria.ru


The newest of serial KUVT of Russia is the product 9K119M "Reflex-M". His rocket 9M119 is independently held in the laser beam of control and is capable of flying at 5 km. There is a tandem cumulative warhead with a penetration of 900 mm behind dynamic protection. Reflex-M carriers can be modern Russian MBT and other models with an 125-mm gun. Interestingly, 9K119 is part of the armament of the Chinese tank "Type 99."

Soviet developments on the topic of KWT were used in the Ukrainian Combat project. This complex entered service with Ukraine in the middle of the 2000s. Compatibility with 125-mm guns and some other design solutions were maintained. The Kombat missile is guided by a laser beam, has a flight range of 5 km and penetrates 750 mm of armor beyond the DZ.

Of particular interest is the LAHAT complex of the Israeli company IAI. This is a universal system suitable for use on different platforms, but it was initially developed for tanks with guns of 105 and 120 mm calibers. LAHAT missiles can be launched through the barrel of a compatible gun or from other launchers. The missile has a semi-active laser seeker and is aimed at the illuminated target. Target designation can be carried out by launching a tank or a third-party gunner. When firing from the ground, the maximum launch range reaches 8 km. A rocket autopilot maneuvers and brings the rocket to the target with a dive. Penetration - 800 mm per DZ.


LAHAT missile in configuration for use on tanks. Wikimedia Commons Photos


Tank systems of guided weapons with missiles are widespread. Such systems are available on all modern tanks of Soviet and Russian production, including actively exported. Israeli KHWT LAHAT are available on tanks in Israel, Germany, India and other countries. Other samples of such weapons came in the armies of their countries and were sold limitedly to foreign armies.

Thus, at present, tanks with missile weapons are available in the armies of several dozen countries, both developed and developing. In fact, guided missiles launched through the barrel have already become almost as common and commonplace as "conventional" shells.

Guided shells


One of the basic principles of improving the combat qualities of a tank was the improvement of "ordinary" shells. Similar processes continue to this day and give some results. The idea of ​​creating an artillery shell with homing systems capable of showing increased accuracy when firing at various targets has great potential.


Key points of the MRM program. Figure Globalsecurity.org


In the past, as part of the Future Combat Systems program in the United States, 120-mm guided projectiles of the MRM (Mid-Range Munition) and TERM (Tank Extended Range Munition) families were developed. Based on available technologies, it was proposed to create cumulative and sub-caliber ammunition capable of aiming at the selected object. Several options for control systems based on a semi-active laser or infrared seeker were studied. It was expected that the presence of the GOS would allow to reliably hit targets in the entire range of firing ranges, regardless of the accuracy of the gun.

In the middle of the 2000s, the XM-1111 MRM projectile reached field tests and showed high performance. A moving target of the “tank” type was able to hit at ranges of more than 8 km. The maximum firing range of shells of the MRM and TERM families was supposed to reach 10-12 km. However, the programs were not finalized. In 2009, they were abandoned due to the scaling down of FCS work. In the future, attempts were made to launch new similar projects.

A similar project was successfully developed in South Korea. The ammunition MBT L2 Black Panther includes 120-mm guided shells of the KSTAM family (Korean Smart Top-Attack Munition). When creating them, foreign ideas and developments were used, as well as our own achievements in the field of guided weapons. Foreign organizations were involved in the design. The range includes two shells of different designs with different operating principles, designed to defeat armored vehicles.


Features of the TERM missiles. Figure Globalsecurity.org


The KSTAM-I projectile is a product with a cumulative warhead and, according to various sources, a radar or infrared seeker. In flight, the ammunition is able to track the position of the target and adjust its trajectory. The flight is carried out along a high trajectory with the defeat of the target from the upper hemisphere. The KSTAM-II shell is built and works differently. With the help of a tank gun, he goes to the target area, where he throws a parachute and begins a slow descent. During the descent, the automatics search for the target and hit it with a cumulative warhead.

KSTAM shells can be used at ranges of at least 2 km. The maximum range, according to various sources, reaches 5-8 km. There are reports of the abandonment of the KSTAM-I shell in favor of the second model of the family. At the same time, official sources are in no hurry to disclose accurate data on the shells.

Development prospects


Guided weapons have long been included in the ammunition of modern tanks, and abandonment of it is simply impossible. At the same time, work is underway to develop such systems, aimed at creating new models with enhanced tactical and technical characteristics. Obviously, this will have a positive effect on the combat qualities of MBT.


Sectional guided KSTAM projectile. Photo Dogswar.ru


To date, in the field of guided tank weapons there have been several major trends. First of all, the development of KUVT with anti-tank missiles launched through the barrel of the gun continues. In addition, the development of shells with full-fledged seekers is ongoing, but this area is still lagging behind. Simpler programmable fuses are being actively introduced.

One can imagine the ways for the further development of tank guided munitions. One should expect the appearance of new shells for various purposes with GOS. Such products make it possible to increase the range and accuracy of firing at different targets, at least without loss of power. Shells like KSTAM should be considered as a successful addition to guided missiles with close combat qualities.

Promising KUVT will have to get new missiles with enhanced range characteristics and firing accuracy. You should also expect a gradual abandonment of semi-automatic control with the transition to the principle of "run-and-forget." However, the development of KUVT is faced with the overall limitations of existing tank guns, and therefore its pace and achievements may be lower than desired.

It cannot be ruled out that in the future, the weapons system of the main battle tanks will include fundamentally new systems, including managed weapons. What kind of new products will be is unknown. We can expect the appearance of tank combat lasers, UAVs with a combat load and other samples, while seemingly fantastic. Nevertheless, the creation and implementation of such systems is unlikely to lead to the abandonment of guns with unguided and “smart” shells or guided missiles. Various types of guided weapons have long taken their place in the fighting compartment of tanks and are unlikely to ever go out of service.
Our news channels

Subscribe and stay up to date with the latest news and the most important events of the day.

39 comments
Information
Dear reader, to leave comments on the publication, you must sign in.
  1. +1
    21 August 2019 18: 12
    The general tendency is that guided weapons are no longer exactly the projectile that should hit the target. And he himself is a hunter.
    As a result, we’ll get to the point that something like a drone will fire from the gun, which, when flying near the tank, will attack it either with itself or with additional charges, possibly even more than one.
    1. +1
      21 August 2019 22: 57
      Will not reach! Tanks in the modern war go in the 3rd echelon, tanks with enemy tanks are not found ... Partisans and Papuans do not count ... The effectiveness of guns with conventional shells has increased ... Now this is not relevant.
      Perhaps the tanks will fit into the Combat Information Systems, but it will not be a tank in the usual sense, but a mini-system, if you want a combat information link ... Although the iron itself will hardly change, but the level is an order of magnitude higher ... Then they will return to this topic again. ... Somewhere like that ...
      1. 0
        22 August 2019 03: 33
        Quote: VO3A
        Will not reach! Tanks in the modern war go in the 3rd echelon, tanks with enemy tanks do not meet.

        And who are in 1 and 2?
        Quote: VO3A
        Efficiency of guns with conventional shells increased

        Not yet. Now the tank has the ability to defend itself from a shot or withstand it. That's why there is talk about increasing the caliber.
        Quote: VO3A
        Perhaps the tanks will fit into the Combat Information Systems, but it will not be a tank in the usual sense, but a mini-system, if you want a combat information link ... Although the iron itself will hardly change, but the level is an order of magnitude higher ... Then they will return to this topic again. ... Somewhere like that ...

        Maybe. But it’s not so important for tanks. The increase in efficiency noticeable due to the information link is such a distant future that it is still poorly understood how much.
        1. -3
          22 August 2019 16: 49
          Maybe. But it’s not so important for tanks. The increase in efficiency noticeable due to the information link is such a distant future that it is still poorly understood how much.

          You've fallen behind for a long time, if not forever ... For dummies, read about "U.S. Army Future Combat System (FCS)"can help you at least to find your way ...
          1. +2
            22 August 2019 17: 27
            That is, you are ahead of the rest, but you can’t explain yourself without prompts or answer questions?
  2. +3
    21 August 2019 18: 58
    The technique is more complicated, more expensive! War is generally very expensive ... business!
  3. +9
    21 August 2019 19: 16
    All Soviet tank KUVTs were designed for the 2A46 launcher, 125 mm caliber. Accordingly, they could be installed on all domestic MBTs, starting with the T-64B.
    It’s hard to write about what you don’t know about.

    KUPV "Knuckles" for 100-mm anti-tank guns T-12.
    On its basis were developed KUVT "Bastion" for Т54 / 55 and "Sheksna" for Т62. Actually, the warhead did not change, only the expelling charge changed in relation to the corresponding weapon.
    Laser control system.
    1. +3
      21 August 2019 21: 21
      Here you can also add the "Fable" for the BMP-3, also from this family.
      1. +4
        21 August 2019 21: 34
        And somehow not a word at all about the 9K120 "Svir" (T-72B, BM) from which the "Reflex" subsequently appeared
    2. 0
      22 August 2019 14: 35
      The quantum rangefinder is pretty heavy for her.
  4. +3
    22 August 2019 00: 28
    Laser backlighting is a thing of the past.
    A miniature GOS is put on a shell, like a rocket.
    And on OBPS, including.
    1. +4
      22 August 2019 06: 48
      no matter where she goes, as she was and is and will be, another question is in local conflicts PRICE-EFFICIENCY, here Reflex has no equal especially if there is Invar in the ammunition
  5. +5
    22 August 2019 00: 59
    . The newest of serial KUVT of Russia is the product 9K119M "Reflex-M"

    The author was modestly shy to say that this is actually a Soviet complex.
    The reflex was adopted in 1985 and immediately began work on modernization, which was completed in the early to mid-90s.
    The USSR left a good legacy to the complex for almost 35 years, modernized for 25 years, and it is all the newest of those actually produced.
    The USSR has a good heritage, sorry, not eternal ...
  6. -3
    22 August 2019 07: 36
    Missiles for a 125 mm cannon have a number of shortcomings not described by the author.
    125 mm cumulative warheads are rather weak against the armor of modern tanks. A 152 mm tank gun would solve the problem. But this is from the realm of speculation.
    A tandem shot against KAZ tanks is not possible.
    As a temporary exit - installation on the sides of the tower in the armored casings of a powerful ATGM.
    It would be nice to have our tanks and such ammunition.
    Especially for the K2 Black Panther tank, Korean engineers developed the KSTAM shot with a projectile with a self-aiming combat element. KSTAM - Korean Smart Top-Attack Munition (Korean “smart” ammunition operating in the upper hemisphere) with a firing range of 2 to 8 km.

    https://topwar.ru/33618-bronya-chernoy-pantery.html
    1. +1
      22 August 2019 11: 32
      If you look to the future, I completely agree with you. It's a shame that they threw cons. Only one but. ATGMs should not be on the sides of the tower but in the rear of the tank in vertical launchers. Like on ships. And this should not be essentially an ATGM but a universal missile. With a large assortment of warheads. And with the drone as well.
      1. +2
        22 August 2019 15: 42

        Something like this? winked
        There is also Berezin's "Huge Black Ship". )))
        1. -1
          22 August 2019 16: 19
          If you did not know then this photo is fake. The original has wings of a different shape and the screw is coaxial.
          1. +1
            22 August 2019 16: 32
            Right! I forgot about the screw! And instead of the tail rotor, the remote-controlled CORD,
      2. 0
        22 August 2019 17: 27
        But seriously, where to put the bvigun? In the front? And where is the crew if the tower is uninhabited?
        Theoretically, of course you can. If the crew is reduced to 2 people. About 100500 hp gravitsapu so far only dreams.
        Hang rockets outside the armored corps? In my humble opinion, the idea is not very. Yes, even a high-explosive fragmentation explosion nearby can destroy this entire battery.
        1. 0
          22 August 2019 18: 04
          Strictly behind the stern is the most protected place, even outside the protected hull. 6-8 containers of 25 by 25 cm and a length of 150-180 cm placed behind the tank and covered with armor holding 14,5 BB will not add much size and weight too. Sights are placed in more accessible places for shelling and are covered similarly.
          1. 0
            22 August 2019 19: 21
            Well, as an option ... But increase the rear overhang by 300-400 mm .... Yes, and from under the geese all the dirt there .....
            I saw once in real life how a 72-ke fountain throws out on a wet primer. Clay, crushed stone, sand. Polygon Chebarkul.
            Have you noticed that tanks have nothing to do with the dimensions of the tracks (I’m talking about the body)? Think just like that? Well, with the exception of 2 tanks and logs (for tanks of the USSR and the Russian Federation) ..
            1. 0
              22 August 2019 19: 47
              Sealed armored housing. What will happen to him from the fountains of mud? Nothing. If done correctly. Both on armature and on t90 it is quite possible to place. On armature just do it perfectly. There, the height of the case allows.
              1. 0
                22 August 2019 20: 40
                Yes, it’s laminar. Throws dirt so that FIG dig out the hatches-covers-exhaust.
                Well, a mortar start solves the exhaust problem. And where will the mud from the top after the opening of the armored box with missiles fly? Partially inward? Yes, and with crushed clay?
                For tanks, grow only the effectiveness of barrels and missiles for them. Modest IMHO. Inside the armored to the full body.
                1. 0
                  22 August 2019 21: 38
                  KAZ. Efficiency will only grow. Either put on a missile means to overcome KAZ or paired / triple launches. To realize both this and that through the trunk is very difficult. But they learned to shoot a rocket from an airtight TPK through dirt and garbage and waves and a storm a long time ago. The trunk must be increased unambiguously. But not yet. Although they have been trying for a long time.
      3. 0
        22 August 2019 23: 26
        Ento how long will the tank be?
        1. 0
          22 August 2019 23: 54
          Add 25 cm per container and 10 per armor to the tank.
    2. 0
      22 August 2019 20: 45
      The cumulative 152 mm will not help: the Kuma has armor penetration of 5 calibers (if everything is good and the shell is not fast and does not spin, it turns out 760 mm), and the equivalent thickness of the armor against the cumulative is already good per meter. But there is another possibility: a 152-mm cannon shell weighs more than 40 kg, if you make a thin-walled shell with 20 kg of explosives, is this enough to ditch the tank?
  7. sen
    0
    22 August 2019 11: 27
    Not exactly:
    There is a tandem cumulative warhead with a penetration of 900 mm for dynamic protection.

    Penetration: 900 mm or 800-850 per DZ.

    https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Рефлекс_(ПТРК)
    For your information:
    According to various estimates, the resistance of the frontal projection of the Abrams tank from the BPS is 850-900 mm and from the COP - 1100-1200 mm.

    https://topwar.ru/151998-kto-kruche-armata-ili-abrams-chast-2.html
  8. 0
    22 August 2019 14: 36
    The main problem is the caliber of the gun ... and the power of the ammunition depended on it.
    1. 0
      22 August 2019 16: 23
      Not only. Under ideal conditions, a 120 mm cum funnel can penetrate 1200 mm of armor. But the material for the manufacture of such funnels is like a half-tank. It is not economical to make such expensive shells / missiles.
      1. 0
        22 August 2019 17: 19
        Yes, but the caliber of the gun will generally increase hemorrhoids.
        1. 0
          22 August 2019 18: 12
          A compromise option is to make a roof in the existing caliber and preferably with a cool combined head and a range of 8-10 km. Only no one is doing this for some reason. For decades, they have been leaders and lost ground.
          1. 0
            22 August 2019 18: 38
            Why then the tank itself? Jews put such missiles on jeeps ....
            1. 0
              22 August 2019 19: 40
              Such missiles are unmeasured and their tank needs three pieces maximum. From other tanks beat off. And the remaining targets are much cheaper to destroy with conventional shells. Infantry support.
              1. 0
                22 August 2019 19: 58
                The Jews eat such tanks, but without a gun. With SPIKES ...
                1. 0
                  22 August 2019 21: 10
                  Externally, they are almost indistinguishable from the usual. An analogue of our Chrysanthemum.
                  1. 0
                    23 August 2019 07: 50
                    But they’re not shooting through a gun ...
                    1. 0
                      23 August 2019 10: 28
                      Well, this is a new kind of technology in fact. Mostly ATGM but with wide capabilities.
  9. +1
    26 August 2019 14: 21
    Good afternoon! Again forced to criticize your article. I can’t call it tough, because I criticize only some points, but they (moments) are fundamental, therefore I have to call my criticism PRINCIPAL. The points:
    1. As for the KUVT "Cobra" for the T-64B and T-80B. Sorry, you have absolutely no information about the differences and features of Soviet (Russian) tanks, their LMS, AZ (MZ) and KUVT for them. The "Cobra" complex, firstly, is absolutely inapplicable on tanks with AZ (T-72 and T-90 of any variants) because of the fundamental differences between AZ and MZ, and secondly, it is RELIABLY outdated due to too much required for it the volume behind the armor and the fundamental lag behind the radio beam guidance in comparison with the laser guidance, and therefore was not installed even on the late Soviet modifications of the T-80.
    2. As for shells with GOS.
    a) sub-caliber. If you don’t even have an idea what a sub-projectile is, I’ll explain: this is a small-diameter core (22-26 mm for modern) made of high-strength alloy, absolutely not carrying explosives and enclosed in a housing that allows it to be fired from a gun (for modern tanks) with a caliber from 120 to 125 mm. The initial velocity of such shells is from 1700 to 1815 m / s (for modern tanks). There are three questions: which GOS can be placed in the specified diameter (and it is critical for armor penetration, the smaller the diameter, the higher the armor penetration), where to place the power supply for this GOS and which GOS will withstand acceleration when shooting (count, considering the initial speed and length of the tank barrel guns).
    b) cumulative. There are no other tanks in NATO armies, OFS are provided only in the ammunition of Soviet tanks, their successors, copies and "clones". I do not know where you got the information from (there is a source - share) that "we managed to hit a moving target at a distance of more than 8 km." As a tanker by training, I dare to assure you NOT ONE modern tank will simply "not see" a target at a distance of 8 km. It's not about sights, but geography - the horizon line for a tank on the ground and on a ground target is much closer. A tank is not a self-propelled gun, its scope of activity as intended is line of sight (not to be confused with the range of a direct shot). Installing the ACS fire control system in it does not allow all the same "reserve volume" and the fundamental question: why? Tank and self-propelled guns are different PURPOSED things.
    c) For any "planning", "over-the-horizon" and other shells with seeker for tanks, who will provide the control center? A commando behind enemy lines for each tank? And with an expensive laser designator "in your pocket"? This is no longer science fiction. For important purposes, there is artillery, for more important - TRK and OTRK. Without a very accurate control center (or "illumination" from the ground), firing shells with a seeker will be an absolutely stupid consumption of ammunition, a dozen of which (or even heels) are more expensive than the tank itself, even the "fancy" one.
    3. A huge personal request, Cyril (if you are a real person) - before you write something for a millionth audience, read at least popular literature and a physics textbook. Good luck

"Right Sector" (banned in Russia), "Ukrainian Insurgent Army" (UPA) (banned in Russia), ISIS (banned in Russia), "Jabhat Fatah al-Sham" formerly "Jabhat al-Nusra" (banned in Russia) , Taliban (banned in Russia), Al-Qaeda (banned in Russia), Anti-Corruption Foundation (banned in Russia), Navalny Headquarters (banned in Russia), Facebook (banned in Russia), Instagram (banned in Russia), Meta (banned in Russia), Misanthropic Division (banned in Russia), Azov (banned in Russia), Muslim Brotherhood (banned in Russia), Aum Shinrikyo (banned in Russia), AUE (banned in Russia), UNA-UNSO (banned in Russia), Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People (banned in Russia), Legion “Freedom of Russia” (armed formation, recognized as terrorist in the Russian Federation and banned)

“Non-profit organizations, unregistered public associations or individuals performing the functions of a foreign agent,” as well as media outlets performing the functions of a foreign agent: “Medusa”; "Voice of America"; "Realities"; "Present time"; "Radio Freedom"; Ponomarev; Savitskaya; Markelov; Kamalyagin; Apakhonchich; Makarevich; Dud; Gordon; Zhdanov; Medvedev; Fedorov; "Owl"; "Alliance of Doctors"; "RKK" "Levada Center"; "Memorial"; "Voice"; "Person and law"; "Rain"; "Mediazone"; "Deutsche Welle"; QMS "Caucasian Knot"; "Insider"; "New Newspaper"