G
Ghillie
Guest
Here is an article from Janes def on the 105mm mounted on wheels.
-----Original Message-----
From: Dave Wright [mailto:dwwright@golden.net]
Sent: Tuesday, 10, June, 2003 11:21 AM
To: dwwright@golden.net
Subject: Jane‘s Defence Weekly 4 Jun 03
Testing Time For The Mobile Gun System
By Kim Burger, JDW Staff Reporter, Washington, DC
The US Army is still developing the most complex of the Stryker 8 x 8
medium-armoured vehicle variants - the Mobile Gun System (MGS) - and
recently decided on several design changes that reflect the challenges of
putting a 105mm gun on a lightweight platform.
A pepper-pot muzzle brake, which was included in the design to ease recoil,
has been eliminated because it was creating a blast overpressure when gases
escaped the gun tube, said Don Howe, senior director of the Stryker
programme for manufacturer General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS). The problem
evolved after the MGS chassis was lowered so that the turret can fit into
the C-130 Hercules tactical transport aircraft, as required by the army,
moving the cannon closer to the front of the vehicle.
The ‘halo‘ of hot gas released by the muzzle brake was damaging the front of
the chassis, GDLS officials said. It also presented a burn hazard to
personnel nearby and crew when the vehicle hatch is open, according to an
army briefing on the subject.
GDLS will adjust the recoil system and, after having conducted simulations
and live-fire testing, believes the system will be able to handle the recoil
without the muzzle brake.
A lighter-weight barrel is also being introduced as part of a
weight-reduction effort to bring the MGS within the 18,733kg combat loaded
weight it must meet for C-130 flight. The new barrel and associated
components save 108.8kg. The army and GDLS will look at incorporating
lighter-weight composite materials and eliminating some items on the
platform as other weight-saving measures, Howe said.
The army also approached GDLS with a list of concerns about comfortably
fitting soldiers in the system, and the removal of obstructions, enabling
crew to make best use of equipment and interfaces. Howe noted that these
issues were caught during testing, which is appropriate for a developmental
programme. "I‘m also pleased to say that most of these issues are corrected
or are being corrected," he said.
Congressman Jim Saxton, a member of the House Armed Services Committee,
raised questions he still has about the MGS at a hearing on 1 May. This
included "danger to the crew when the gun is fired because of the muzzle
velocity, and the recoil and the relatively light weight of the vehicle for
purposes of handling the recoil from the gun", he said. An amendment
co-sponsored by Saxton was included in the 2004 defence-spending bill passed
by the House directing the army to provide extra information on Stryker
brigade lethality and sustainability.
-----Original Message-----
From: Dave Wright [mailto:dwwright@golden.net]
Sent: Tuesday, 10, June, 2003 11:21 AM
To: dwwright@golden.net
Subject: Jane‘s Defence Weekly 4 Jun 03
Testing Time For The Mobile Gun System
By Kim Burger, JDW Staff Reporter, Washington, DC
The US Army is still developing the most complex of the Stryker 8 x 8
medium-armoured vehicle variants - the Mobile Gun System (MGS) - and
recently decided on several design changes that reflect the challenges of
putting a 105mm gun on a lightweight platform.
A pepper-pot muzzle brake, which was included in the design to ease recoil,
has been eliminated because it was creating a blast overpressure when gases
escaped the gun tube, said Don Howe, senior director of the Stryker
programme for manufacturer General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS). The problem
evolved after the MGS chassis was lowered so that the turret can fit into
the C-130 Hercules tactical transport aircraft, as required by the army,
moving the cannon closer to the front of the vehicle.
The ‘halo‘ of hot gas released by the muzzle brake was damaging the front of
the chassis, GDLS officials said. It also presented a burn hazard to
personnel nearby and crew when the vehicle hatch is open, according to an
army briefing on the subject.
GDLS will adjust the recoil system and, after having conducted simulations
and live-fire testing, believes the system will be able to handle the recoil
without the muzzle brake.
A lighter-weight barrel is also being introduced as part of a
weight-reduction effort to bring the MGS within the 18,733kg combat loaded
weight it must meet for C-130 flight. The new barrel and associated
components save 108.8kg. The army and GDLS will look at incorporating
lighter-weight composite materials and eliminating some items on the
platform as other weight-saving measures, Howe said.
The army also approached GDLS with a list of concerns about comfortably
fitting soldiers in the system, and the removal of obstructions, enabling
crew to make best use of equipment and interfaces. Howe noted that these
issues were caught during testing, which is appropriate for a developmental
programme. "I‘m also pleased to say that most of these issues are corrected
or are being corrected," he said.
Congressman Jim Saxton, a member of the House Armed Services Committee,
raised questions he still has about the MGS at a hearing on 1 May. This
included "danger to the crew when the gun is fired because of the muzzle
velocity, and the recoil and the relatively light weight of the vehicle for
purposes of handling the recoil from the gun", he said. An amendment
co-sponsored by Saxton was included in the 2004 defence-spending bill passed
by the House directing the army to provide extra information on Stryker
brigade lethality and sustainability.
