The 107mm B-11 recoilless cannon is intended for:
- defeat / destruction of tanks, armored and unarmored enemy ground vehicles;
- defeat / destruction of enemy personnel and weapons located both in shelters and outside shelters;
- defeat / destruction of various types of DOS / DZOS direct fire;
- creation of passages for own infantry units in wire-type barriers.
The development of a 107mm recoilless cannon began in the late 1940s under the leadership of B. Shavyrin at SKB-4. The work was carried out on the basis of the B-10 gun, a similar design and principle of operation was used, which greatly simplified further mass production. The gun entered the troops in 1954 as a 107mm B-11 recoilless gun. The main manufacturer is the Tula Machine-Building Plant. Was in service with units of the Airborne Forces and MSD. Delivered abroad to the states of the Warsaw Pact, China, Egypt, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Device and design
The B-11 cannon consists of a barrel, bolt, frame and aiming mechanisms. The barrel is made without autofreting, it has a smooth channel with an end thread for transporting hooks. The implement is connected to the truck with a hook during transportation; for rolling it manually, special handles are made on the hook. In the middle of the barrel, a clip was placed for attaching the front frame and a tongue-and-groove clip for attaching the frame and sight. The breech has a charging chamber with a breech, a connected shutter, valves and parts of the trigger mechanism. The latches are used to prevent the ammunition located in the rear chamber from falling out when the barrel of the gun is raised for firing at a large vertical angle.
The shutter consists of:
- impact mechanism;
- trigger mechanism;
- extractor;
- a replaceable ring.
The extractor is used to eject the charging system after the shot has been fired, a replaceable ring with 2 holes serves to form the nozzle throat. When a shot is fired, part of the gases passes through the nozzle opening in the opposite direction of the ammunition movement along the barrel, thereby providing the effect of recoilless firing. The jam is opened from the left side, for which you must first press the handle of the shutter unlocking / locking mechanism.
The barrel is located on a tripod bed and is connected to it by a hinge. Both rear supports of a fixed design and a front movable support, a wheel axle with 2 wheels (wheels are located on swivel rollers with springs) and guide mechanisms are attached to the frame of the bed. The handle of the turning mechanism was located on the left side of the gun, the handle of the lifting mechanism was located directly under the barrel.
Used sighting device - PBO-4. It comes with lighting equipment. As an additional (emergency) sighting device, a mechanical frame sight is used, which allows aimed fire at a distance of up to 1.2 kilometers. The PBO-4 sight is provided with a 2.5x magnification with a field of view up to 9 degrees, direct fire - a threefold magnification with a field of view up to 18 degrees.
To destroy equipment and structures, cumulative ammunition BK-883 (MK-11) is used, with an effective range of up to 1.4 kilometers and armor penetration up to 381mm. To destroy the personnel of enemy units, high-explosive fragmentation ammunition O-883A (MO-11) with a maximum range of up to 6.6 kilometers is used. The shells are drop-shaped and equipped with a GK-2 fuse, a charging system with a centered disc, a main charge, a primer and an additional charge.
Due to the applied method of recoilless firing, when firing, powder gases are emitted away from the gun at 90 degrees and in this a dangerous zone is created in a direction up to 40 meters long. The B-11 recoilless cannon can be transported at speeds up to 60 km / h, transported manually. The gun is carried in parts - the barrel, the frame and the wheel part.
The main characteristics of the B-11:
- maximum length up to 3.5 meters;
- maximum width up to 1.45 meters;
- height - 0.9 meters;
- combat weight - 305 kilograms;
- line of fire - from 710 to 1200mm;
- ground clearance - 32 centimeters;
- wheel travel - 1.25 meters;
- direct fire (cumulative projectile) - 450 meters;
- maximum range of fire - 6.65 kilometers;
- initial speed KS / OFS - 400/375 m / s;
- weight characteristics: barrel / bed / wheel travel - 128/101/37 kilograms;
- weight characteristics of KS / OFS ammunition - 7.5 / 8.5 kilograms;
- weight of the charging system - 5 kilograms;
- guidance angles vertical / horizontal up to 45/35 degrees;
- transfer to the combat / stowed position - 60/60 seconds;
- rate of fire up to 5 rds / minutes;
- PBO-4 weight - 2.3 kilograms;
- calculation - commander, gunner, shell carriers and loader (5 people).
