Image source: topwar.ru
The South Korean company Poongsan announced a significant achievement: a 155-mm extended-range projectile was created, which justified all the requirements of the country's Defense Ministry.
As reported in the publication The KED Global, the new ammunition when fired from the K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzer demonstrates an impressive increase in range - by one and a half times:
The start of mass production of the new product is scheduled for 2024.
Currently, the K9 Thunder self-propelled gun has the ability to launch not only typical NATO shells, but also the K307 ammunition developed by Poongsan. It includes a gas generator capable of operating for about 30 seconds after a shot and providing, together with an additional charge, a high firing range by reducing aerodynamic drag.
The new ammunition, the TTX and the mechanism of operation of which are not disclosed, was created, apparently, on the basis of K307. The mass of the K307, together with the fuse and the gas generator, is 46.4 kg, the length is 945 mm, the initial flight speed is 928 m / s.
The Russian army is equipped with ammunition with both a bottom gas generator (for example, 152-mm 3OF61 "Alagez") and an APC having a jet engine instead of a gas generator (ZOF30). They began to enroll in the army en masse after the start of the SVO.
