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 projectiles or missile systems with a missile launch 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 further development of this direction should be expected.
Missile systems
In the sixties, advances in 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 tank weapons (KUVT) appeared. To date, a number of tanks produced in different countries can use guided missiles launched through the barrel of the main weapon. The development of new KUVT is underway.
The most famous are the KUVT developments of 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. In the future, several other systems of a similar class were created, with improved characteristics. All Soviet tank KUVTs were developed for the 2A46 gun-launcher with a caliber of 125 mm. Accordingly, they could be installed on all domestic MBTs, starting with the T-64B.
KUVT "Cobra" was built around the 9M112 rocket 968 mm long and 125 mm in diameter, with folding planes. Semi-automatic guidance was used, in which the control devices of the tank tracked the missile along the direction finder and issued commands via the radio channel. Provided firing at a distance of up to 4 km. Armor penetration - up to 700 mm.
The newest of the serial KUVT in Russia is the 9K119M Reflex-M product. Its 9M119 rocket is independently held in the laser control beam and is capable of flying 5 km. There is a tandem cumulative warhead with 900 mm penetration behind ERA. Carriers of "Reflex-M" can be modern Russian MBT and other models with a 125-mm cannon. Interestingly, the 9K119 is part of the armament of the Chinese Type 99 tank.
Soviet developments on the topic of KUVT were used in the Ukrainian project "Combat". This complex entered service with Ukraine in the mid-2000s. Compatibility with 125-mm guns and some other design solutions were retained. The missile "Kombat" is guided by a laser beam, has a flight range of 5 km and penetrates 750 mm of armor behind the remote control.
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 originally developed for tanks with 105 and 120 mm cannons. 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 an illuminated target. Target designation can be carried out by the launching tank or by a third-party gunner. When firing from the ground, the maximum launch range reaches 8 km. The missile autopilot maneuvers and brings the missile to the target from a dive. Penetration - 800 mm for DZ.
Tank complexes of guided weapons with missiles are widespread. Such systems are available on all modern Soviet and Russian-made tanks, incl. actively exported. Israeli KUVT LAHAT are available on tanks of Israel, Germany, India and other countries. Other samples of such weapons entered the armies of their countries and were sold to foreign armies to a limited extent.
Thus, at present, tanks with missile weapons are 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" projectiles.
Guided projectiles
One of the main principles of improving the fighting qualities of the tank was the improvement of "conventional" shells. Such 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.
In the past, as part of the Future Combat Systems program in the United States, guided 120-mm projectiles of the MRM (Mid-Range Munition) and TERM (Tank Extended Range Munition) families were developed. Based on the available technologies, it was proposed to create cumulative and sub-caliber ammunition capable of aiming at a selected object. Several options for control systems based on a semi-active laser or infrared seeker were being worked out. It was expected that the presence of a seeker would 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. It was possible to hit a moving target of the "tank" type at ranges of more than 8 km. The maximum firing range of shells of the MRM and TERM families was to reach 10-12 km. However, the programs were not completed. In 2009, they were abandoned due to the curtailment of work on FCS. In the future, attempts were made to launch new similar projects.
A similar project was successfully developed in South Korea. The ammunition load of the MBT L2 Black Panther includes 120-mm guided projectiles of the KSTAM (Korean Smart Top-Attack Munition) family. When creating them, foreign ideas and developments were used, as well as their own achievements in the field of guided weapons. Foreign organizations were involved in the design. The line includes two shells of different design with different principles of action, designed to destroy armored vehicles.
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 projectile is built and works differently. With the help of a tank gun, he goes to the target area, where he throws out a parachute and begins a slow descent. When descending, the automatics looks for a target and hits 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 projectile in favor of the second model of the family. At the same time, official sources are in no hurry to disclose exact data on the shells.
Development prospects
Guided weapons have long been included in the ammunition of modern tanks, and abandoning it is simply impossible. At the same time, work is underway to develop such systems aimed at creating new models with improved tactical and technical characteristics. Obviously, this will have a positive effect on the combat qualities of MBT.
To date, several major trends have emerged in the field of guided tank weapons. First of all, the development of KUVT with anti-tank missiles launched through the barrel of a gun continues. In addition, the development of shells with full-fledged seeker is underway, but this direction is still lagging behind. Simpler programmable fuses are being actively introduced.
You can imagine ways for the further development of tank guided munitions. We should expect the emergence of new projectiles for various purposes with the seeker. Such products allow you to increase the range and accuracy of shooting at various targets, at least without loss of power. Shells like KSTAM should be considered as a good addition to guided missiles with similar combat qualities.
Promising KUVT will have to receive new missiles with improved range and accuracy. We should also expect a gradual abandonment of semi-automatic control with a transition to the "fire-and-forget" principle. 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, fundamentally new systems will be included in the armament complex of main battle tanks, incl. controlled weapon. It is not known what such new items will be. We can expect the emergence 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" projectiles or from guided missiles. Complexes of guided weapons of various kinds have long taken their place in the fighting compartments of tanks and are unlikely to ever go out of service.
