The M913 ESIP Projectile, 105MM, HERA on the AC-130 Gunship

I was thinking about the 105mm gun on the Specter Gunships. I wonder what the M913 ESIP Projectile range would be from altitude. I know from the ground it will fire nearly 20KM. At altitude, I would assume this range would be increased. Can you imaging an AC-130 is positioned some 30KM from the target and it can hit it with accuracy with a 105mm cannon?

M913 ESIP Projectile 105mm HERA: fas.org...

I am sure this is classified information but it is interesting to speculate on to me.

a reply to: machineintelligence

The range doesn’t do much good without some accuracy.
A plane flying 200kph,,wild guess there,, makes one hell of a cross wind.

Hard to imagine being about to be accurate at that distance.

a reply to: machineintelligence

the entire point of the HERA projectile is to allow light infantry units - that ONLY have the 105 - to engage an enemy at ranges that thier tubes " should not be able to "

these units are NOT expecting to hit specific points - at such range - but to interdict and harrass // disrupt enemy forces that think they are safe

the gunship - is doing an entirely different job - and does not need a 20 km + stand off

almost all its other weapons are < 5000 m it has to get in close - it can deal with MANPADS and light return fire - but not theatre SAMs that can strike out at 20km plus

also - the 105s [ ground ] - have volume [ an entire battery ] and rate of fire to work an are - the gunship - has just 1 tube

thats my opinion why the gunship should not attempt to use these range extended rounds

The calculation in theory should be basic maths in that you know height,angle,weight,force when it leaves the barrel etc but the weather will have a massive effect on the landing point, also I wonder about the force produced by the firing of such an item would cause to the airframe especially if you are firing such a thing quickly.

If you fancy dropping stuff on somewhere specific then theres a load of guided stuff you can use that will do the job much better and if you just need to level an area theres b52's for carpeting the area.

a reply to: machineintelligence


I can see a practical use of such a round on an AC-130.

first the aircraft can (and most likely have due to it is also used in special operations) have electronics that can calculate all the factors to put the shell relatively accurately... if not the first round definitely following rounds...
especially given (unlike the infantry unit unless has a drone) they are at a vantage point to see where it landed.

second .. one possible practical use is the ability to stay farther out from know anti aircraft sites and suspected manpat anti air missiles. In fact they could take out an anti aircraft (or other important threat) asset then come in to finish off the opposition

IMO this gives an added ability of not only specialty ordinance warhead but added range that normally would not be expected or available for this remarkable craft.

scrounger

originally posted by: Maxatoria
The calculation in theory should be basic maths in that you know height,angle,weight,force when it leaves the barrel etc but the weather will have a massive effect on the landing point, also I wonder about the force produced by the firing of such an item would cause to the airframe especially if you are firing such a thing quickly.

If you fancy dropping stuff on somewhere specific then theres a load of guided stuff you can use that will do the job much better and if you just need to level an area theres b52's for carpeting the area.

I suspect the recoil would be the same as any other standard 105 shell.. because on a practical level having the rocket boost going off in the tube could have dangerous consequences (both on structural integrity of the tube and the crew manning it from backblast). In short like how a recoilless rifle works...

as for firing quickly given the above last comment should be no different than the usual rapid fire they do with standard rounds.

scrounger

a reply to: machineintelligence


just spitballing wondering if these come with lazer guidance?

think about that capability.. range with accuracy

scrounger

a reply to: scrounger

I know that they can use exhaust gas from a rocket diverted to operate small flaps on the shell or port out some gas for attitude control if needed. A laser guidance package should also be possible.

a reply to: scrounger

I expect they have different mission packages for various tasks but I see no reason they would use a different loading system as the original 105mm gun on the M1-A Abrams. Those carried 55 rounds of 105mm HE fragmentation, HEAT, SABOT DU anti-tank and, WP ammo. From overhead, most armor is thinner as well. I was in the Second AD. We did indirect fire first-round metal on metal quite often way before today's computers and sensors and drones were being fielded. I imagine a technology package like the AC-130 variants is up to the task of effective fire with rocket-assisted 105mm shells or perhaps a cut-down version of the 155mm aerospike hypersonic artillery. Either give the US the option of hypersonic flight times to target using fairly low cost rounds.