In mid-2018, a US destroyer fired 20 hypervelocity projectiles (HVP) from a standard Mk 45 5-inch deck gun. The Hypervelocity projectiles will make the guns effective and low-cost weapons against cruise missiles and larger unmanned aerial vehicles.
In 2016, there was test firing from US Army artillery guns.
US Defense Department modeling shows that hypervelocity projectile (HVP) weapons would be able to shoot down most of a 100-missile raid.
Ten to One Hundred Times Lower Cost
Anti-cruise missile weapons currently cost $1 to $2 million while hypervelocity shells are 25,000 to $100,000 range. The HVP that cost $75,000 to 100,000 are the fanciest version with an onboard seeker.
Triple the Range and Double the Speed
BAE Systems HVP is 24 inches long and weighs 28 pounds, including a 15-pound payload.
The maximum rate of fire for HVP is
20 rounds per minute from a Mk 45 5-inch gun,
10 rounds per minute from the 155mm gun on DDG-1000 class destroyers (called the Advanced Gun System, or AGS), and
6 rounds per minute from EMRG (Electromagnetic railgun).
HVP’s firing range is
more than 40 nautical miles (when fired from a Mk 45 Mod 2 5-inch gun),
more than 50 nautical miles (Mk 45 Mod 4 5-inch gun),
more than 70 nautical miles (155mm gun on DDG-1000 class destroyers).
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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