via Bayou Man Blog
A week ago, I wrote about how several nations are up-gunning their infantry fighting vehicles (IFV's) and armored personnel carriers (APC's). Russia is leading the "caliber wars" with an updated version of a Cold War-era 57mm cannon, and others aren't far behind.
I mentioned the Franco-British CT40 40mm cannon in that article. I've since been advised that, no matter how effective it may be, the cost of its ammunition is "eye-watering", due to its extremely compact and specialized design. It's been suggested that each round is at least two to three times the cost of more conventional equivalents, and sometimes more. If so, I'd regard that as a major concern. Armies need to train with the weapons they're going to use in combat - simulators can only do so much compared to using the real thing. If training becomes too expensive, due to the cost of ammo, then budgetary reality will dictate that training be cut back. That can be disastrous when the proverbial brown substance hits the rotary air impeller. It's something to keep in mind, for sure. (The new Russian cannon will use conventional ammunition that's been in production for over half a century, and is well understood. Even with more capable modern projectiles, the cost per round should still be manageable.)Story here.
Now we read that a new XM913 50mm experimental cannon has just been demonstrated for the US Army. This is a very innovative weapon, one that's been resurrected from the scrap heap of the Cold War to become a very viable option for future armored vehicles, so I'd like to spend a little time on it.
I would SO LOVE to see this gun mounted on select ACVs within the Amphibious Assault Platoon!
